Method and device for controlling peripheral devices via a social networking platform

ABSTRACT

A method and device for providing access to one or more peripheral devices over a social networking platform includes registering a first peripheral device coupled to a first user device as a respective social network contact of a user account associated with the first user device; and providing user access to the first peripheral device via a social networking client application executing at the first user device, wherein the social networking client application recognizes the first peripheral device as the respective social network contact of the user account associated with the first user device.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/463,614 filed Aug. 19, 2014, which is acontinuation application of PCT Patent Application No.PCT/CN2014/073309, entitled “METHOD AND DEVICE FOR CONTROLLINGPERIPHERAL DEVICES VIA A SOCIAL NETWORKING PLATFORM” filed Mar. 12,2013, both of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to the field of Internet technologies,and in particular, to a method and device for controlling peripheraldevices via a social networking platform.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

With the development of the Internet, people become increasing relianton various electronic devices for various tasks in their daily lives.Many light weight and simple devices and gadgets, such as smart watches,health monitors, music players, climate controls, smart coffee makers,vehicle charging stations, navigation systems, sports equipment, set-topboxes, etc., are increasing taking over the functions of more complexand heavy duty equipment and systems, as well as the general-purposecomputing devices (e.g., a general desktop computer, or laptopcomputer).

Many electronic devices and gadgets have smart chips and internal logicthat allow them to be controlled through software-driven user interfacesprovided on the devices. With the development of mobile network-enableddevices, such as smart phones and tablet devices, people are able toperform more tasks without location constraints. Many electronic devicesand gadgets can become peripheral devices of a main user device (e.g., asmart phone or tablet device) and be controlled via respectiveproprietary software (e.g., a proprietary app for each peripheraldevice) installed on the main user device.

In a thriving market for these light weight and specialized gadgets,different manufacturers provide analogous products with their owndesigns of user interfaces and controls. Currently, there are no unifiedstandards for the product designs, and the communication and informationsharing between different types of products and/or similar products ofdifferent manufacturers. It is therefore challenging for users toexplore and learn the different user interfaces and functions ofdifferent products they purchase. It is even more difficult for theusers to share information created or gathered in their own gadgets withothers who may or may not possess the same types of devices.

Today, many users are active participants of one or more socialnetworking platforms. A social networking platform provides the means toconnect people using instant messages, message boards, one-on-oneconversations, or group chats, between social network contacts andpeople in different social network groups or online communities. A useraccesses his/her own social network account via a social networkingclient application installed on his or her user device (e.g., a smartphone or tablet device). Users of the social networking clientapplication have become accustom to the controls of establishingcontacts, and sending and reading messages over a social networkingplatform. So far, the functions of the social networking clientapplication are limited to communications between human users.Peripheral devices, such as a built-in camera, or microphone, can beused within the social networking client application as a means tocapture user input (e.g., voice or image input) that forms the contentof a message to be delivered to another user, but it is impractical forthe provider of the social networking client application to expandsupport for controlling other types of peripheral devices due todevelopment complexity, costs, and huge design variations among thedifferent peripheral devices.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure describes a method and device for controllingperipheral devices via a social networking platform. As stated above inthe background, social networking has becoming increasingly prevalent intoday's world. Many people are already very familiar with the operationsand controls of the social networking client applications for one ormore social networking platforms. Enabling access and control ofperipheral devices over social network messages (e.g., instant messagesin a natural language) sent and received over a social networkingplatform help users to avoid learning many proprietary user interfacesfor different peripheral devices and making the communication with theperipheral devices more natural and intuitive. Furthermore, simpleunified user interface controls can be provided for peripheral devicesmade by different manufacturers, allowing users to easily shareinformation across peripheral devices of different manufactures anddevice types.

In the present disclosure, various embodiments illustrate theinter-relationships between different parties involved in providingaccess and controls of peripheral devices via a social networkingplatform, including servers of manufacturers or support serviceproviders for the peripheral devices, the server(s) of the socialnetworking platform, the user devices, the users, and the peripheraldevices to be controlled via the social networking platform.Furthermore, communication scenarios, user interfaces, process flows,and device discovery and communication protocols between differentparties involved in the social networking platform are disclosed.Manufacturers of the peripheral device can adhere to the protocolsestablished by the social networking platform for device registration,device discovery, communication of instructions and responses,presentation of information, etc. to share the load for providing thenecessary backend support and services from the server of the socialnetworking platform and the social networking client applicationexecuting on the main user devices.

In some embodiments, a method registering a peripheral device on asocial networking platform includes: at a user device having one or moreprocessors and memory: executing a social networking client applicationof the social networking platform on the user device; through the socialnetworking client application, receiving an input identifying aperipheral device; and in response to receiving the input identifyingthe peripheral device: sending a request to establish a socialnetworking identity for the peripheral device; and upon successfulestablishment of the social networking identity for the peripheraldevice, presenting the peripheral device as a social network contact ofthe user account in a user interface of the social networking clientapplication. In some embodiments, receiving the input identifying theperipheral device further includes scanning, via a barcode scanner, abarcode associated with the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, a method for registering a peripheral device on asocial networking platform includes: at a user device having one or moreprocessors and memory: executing a social networking client applicationof the social networking platform on the user device; through the socialnetworking client application, receiving an input identifying a supportservice provider for a respective type of peripheral devices; and inresponse to receiving the input identifying the support service providerfor the respective type of peripheral devices: registering a publicsocial network identity of the support service provider as a contact ofa user account currently associated with the user device; and searchingwithin a surrounding region of the user device to locate a peripheraldevice of the respective type of peripheral device. In some embodiments,receiving the input identifying the support service provider for therespective type of peripheral devices further includes scanning, via abarcode scanner, a barcode associated with the support service providerfor the respective type of peripheral devices.

In some embodiments, a method for providing access and control of aperipheral device through a support service provider thereof over asocial networking platform includes: at a server of the socialnetworking platform: receiving a servicer registration request from thesupport service provider, the servicer registration request specifying atype of peripheral devices to be serviced by the support serviceprovider; establishing a public social network identity for the supportservice provider based on the registration request; receiving a firstowner registration request from a first user, the first ownerregistration request specifying a first peripheral device controlled bythe first user; upon a determination that the first peripheral device isof the type of peripheral devices specified in the servicer registrationrequest, establishing a social network relationship between the publicsocial network identity of the support service provider and the firstuser; and providing first respective communication messages targetingthe first peripheral device and second respective communication messagesoriginated from the first peripheral device as respective instantmessages in a conversation interface of a chat session between therespective social network identity of the first user and the publiccontact identity of the support service provider.

In some embodiments, a method for providing access and control of aperipheral device over a social networking platform includes: at aserver of the social networking platform: registering the peripheraldevice coupled to a first user device as a respective social networkcontact of a user account associated with the first user device; andproviding user access to the peripheral device via a social networkingclient application executing at the first user device, wherein thesocial networking client application recognizes the peripheral device asthe respective social network contact of the user account associatedwith the first user device.

In some embodiments, a method for providing access and control of aperipheral device through a support service provider thereof over asocial networking platform includes: at a server of the socialnetworking platform: receiving a servicer registration request from thesupport service provider, the servicer registration request specifying atype of peripheral devices to be serviced by the support serviceprovider; establishing a public social network identity for the supportservice provider based on the servicer registration request; receiving afirst owner registration request from a first user, the first ownerregistration request specifying a first peripheral device controlled bythe first user; and upon a determination that the first peripheraldevice is of the type of peripheral devices specified in the servicerregistration request: creating a respective social network identity forthe first peripheral device on the social networking platform; andestablishing a social network relationship between the public socialnetwork identity of the support service provider, the first user, andthe respective social network identity of the first peripheral device.In some embodiments, the method further include: establishing arespective group chat session between the public social network identityof the support service provider, the first user, and the respectivesocial network identity of the first peripheral device.

In some embodiments, a method for providing communication betweenperipheral devices over a social networking platform include: at aserver of the social networking platform: registering a first peripheraldevice and a second peripheral device coupled to a first user device asrespective social network contacts of a user account associated with thefirst user device; enabling communication between the first peripheraldevice and the second peripheral device via a social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device; and in a group chatinterface of the social networking client application, presenting agroup conversation between a user of the user account and the respectivesocial network contacts representing the first and the second peripheraldevices, wherein the group conversation includes one or more instantmessages corresponding to content of the communication between the firstperipheral device and the second peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the method for connecting a peripheral device to auser device via a Bluetooth protocol includes: initiating anbroadcasting process, including: broadcasting a device discoverymessage, the device discovery message comprising a predeterminedidentifier designated for a social networking service associated with asocial networking application executing on the user device; receiving,from the user device, a connection request corresponding to the devicediscovery message; and in response to receiving the connection requestfrom the user device, establishing a Bluetooth connection to the userdevice. In some embodiments, the method further includes: during thebroadcasting process: broadcasting the device discovery message withineach of a series of first transmission timeslots during an initialbroadcasting period; and if no connection request responding to thedevice discovery message is received during the initial broadcastingperiod, broadcasting the device discovery message within each of aseries of second transmission timeslots during a subsequent broadcastingperiod after the initial broadcasting period, wherein each firsttransmission time slot is shorter than each second transmission timeslot.

In some embodiments, a method for connecting a peripheral device to auser device via a Bluetooth protocol includes: at the user device:initiating a device scan process, including: detecting a devicediscovery message from the peripheral device; and determining whetherthe device discovery message includes a predetermined identifierdesignated for a social networking service associated with a socialnetworking application executing on the user device; and upondetermining that the device discovery message includes the predeterminedidentifier designated for the social networking service associated witha social networking application executing on the user device, sending,to the peripheral device, a connection request corresponding to thedevice discovery message; and establishing a Bluetooth connection to theperipheral device.

In some embodiments, a method for transmitting data between a peripheraldevice and a user device via a Bluetooth Low Energy connection,includes: at the peripheral device: transmitting data to the user devicein a simulated data stream, the transmitting including: identifying afirst Bluetooth characteristic for writing data, the first Bluetoothcharacteristic having been exposed by the peripheral device to the userdevice in a current connection event; dividing a data packet that is tobe transmitted to the user device into a sequence of data frames pluszero or one remainder, each data frame having a respective size equal toa predetermined data size of the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic, and the remainder having a respective size smaller thanthe predetermined data size of the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic; and for each of the sequence of data frames: writing thedata frame to a respective value for the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic; and pushing the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic for reading by the user device. In some embodiments, themethod of claim further include: padding the reminder to obtain a paddedremainder have a respective size equal to the predetermined size of theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic; writing the padded reminderto the respective value for the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic; and pushing the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic for reading by the user device. In some embodiments,pushing the identified first Bluetooth characteristic for reading by theuser device further includes: requesting the user device to read anupdated value of the identified first Bluetooth characteristic throughan indication operation. In some embodiments, the method furtherincludes: for each of the sequence of data frames: receiving arespective confirmation for reading of the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic from the user device, wherein the writing and the pushingof a next data frame in the sequence of data frames is performed inresponse to receiving the respective confirmation until no more dataframe or remainder in the data packet remains to be transmitted.

In some embodiments, a method for transmitting data between a peripheraldevice and a user device via a Bluetooth Low Energy protocol, including:at the user device: transmitting data to the peripheral device in asimulated data stream, the transmitting including: identifying a firstBluetooth characteristic for sending data to the peripheral device, thefirst Bluetooth characteristic having been exposed by the peripheraldevice to the user device in the current connection event; dividing afirst data packet that is to be transmitted to the peripheral deviceinto a sequence of data frames plus zero or one remainder, each dataframe having a respective size equal to a predetermined data size of theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic, and the remainder having arespective size smaller than the predetermined data size of theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic; and for each of the sequenceof data frames, sending a respective write request to writing the dataframe to a respective value of the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic. In some embodiments, the method further includes:padding the reminder to obtain a padded remainder have a respective sizeequal to the predetermined data size of the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic; and sending a respective write request to write thepadded remainder to the respective value of the identified firstBluetooth characteristic.

In some embodiments, a method of communicating with a peripheral deviceover a social networking platform, includes: at a server of a supportservice provider for a type of peripheral devices including theperipheral device: registering with a server of the social networkplatform as the support service provider for the peripheral device;initiating a communication event to send an instruction to theperipheral device, initiating the communication event including:generating a push request data packet for the instruction, wherein thepush request data packet identifies the peripheral device as a target ofthe instruction; and sending the push request data packet to theperipheral device via the server of the social networking platform and auser device coupled to the peripheral device. In some embodiments, themethod further includes: receiving a request data packet from theperipheral device via the user device coupled to the peripheral deviceand the server of the social networking platform; and in response toreceiving the request data packet from the peripheral device, sending aresponse data packet to the peripheral device via the server of thesocial networking platform and the user device coupled to the peripheraldevice.

In some embodiments, a method of communicating with a peripheral deviceover a social networking platform, including: at a server of the socialnetwork platform: registering the peripheral device as an associatedperipheral device of a user device coupled to the peripheral device;receiving a first push request data packet from a support serviceprovider for a type of peripheral devices including the peripheraldevice, wherein the first push request data packet identifies theperipheral device as a target of the first push request data packet; andin response to receiving the first push request data packet, forwardingthe first push request data packet to the peripheral device via the userdevice coupled to the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, a method of communicating with a peripheral deviceover a social networking platform, including: at a user device coupledto the peripheral device: registering the peripheral device as anassociated peripheral device of the user device with a server of thesocial networking platform; receiving a push request data packet fromthe server of the social networking platform, wherein the push requestdata packet identifies the peripheral device as a target of the pushrequest data packet; and forwarding the push request data packet to theperipheral device.

In some embodiments, an electronic device (e.g., a server of a supportservice provider, a server of the social networking platform, aperipheral device, or a user device) includes one or more processors andmemory storing one or more programs for execution by the one or moreprocessors, the one or more programs including instructions forperforming the operations of the methods described herein. In someembodiments, a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storingone or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions,which, when executed by an electronic device (e.g., a server of asupport service provider, a server of the social networking platform, aperipheral device, or a user device) each with one or more processors,cause the electronic device to perform the operations of the methodsdescribed herein.

In some embodiments, as would be apparent to a person of ordinary skillsin the art, the operations performed by one device (e.g., a user device)may complement or correspond to the operations performed by anotherdevice (e.g., a server) and may be controlled by instructions receivedfrom the other device or cause actions by the other device. In addition,the data and information needed by one device to perform the methodsdescribed herein may be provided by another device. In various places ofthe present disclosure, when description of the functions of one deviceis provided, descriptions of at least some apparent correspondingactions of another device may be omitted for purpose of brevity;however, such omitted description would be apparent to a person ofordinary skills in the art and require no creative efforts to beproduced by a person of ordinary skills in the art.

Various advantages of the present invention would be apparent in lightof the descriptions below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a block diagram of an exemplary operating environment for aconventional social networking platform in accordance with someembodiments.

FIG. 1B is a block diagram of an exemplary operating environment for asocial networking platform that supports access and control ofperipheral devices via the social networking platform, in accordancewith some embodiments.

FIGS. 2A-2H are exemplary user interfaces for setting up access andcontrol of a peripheral device via a social networking clientapplication in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 2I illustrates a simplified process flow for a device manufacturerto obtain a support service account from a provider of the socialnetworking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 2J illustrates a simplified process flow for a user device toobtain a social network identity for a supported peripheral device inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 2K-2T illustrate message translation and flow in variouscommunication scenarios involving accessing and controlling a peripheraldevice over a social networking platform in accordance with someembodiments.

FIGS. 3A-3C are flow charts for an exemplary process for setting upaccess and control of a peripheral device over a social networkingplatform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 3D-3E are flow charts for an exemplary process for setting upaccess and control for a peripheral device over a social networkingplatform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 4A-4D are flow charts for an exemplary process for providingaccess and control of a peripheral device through a support serviceprovider thereof over a social networking platform in accordance withsome embodiments.

FIGS. 5A-5C are flow charts for an exemplary process for controlling aperipheral device as a social network contact over a social networkingplatform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 6A-6D are flow charts for an exemplary process for providingcontrol and access to a peripheral device by treating the peripheraldevice as a social network contact in a social network in accordancewith some embodiments.

FIGS. 7A-7C are flow charts for an exemplary process for providingcontrol and access between peripheral devices in a social network inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating timing requirements for anexemplary device discovery process and a subsequent communicationprocess implemented by a peripheral device and a user device inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 9A-9B are simplified flow charts for an exemplary data transferprocess implemented by a peripheral device and a user device inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 10A-10C are block diagrams illustrating an exemplary messagetransmission processes between a peripheral device, a user device, acommunication server, and a support server in accordance with someembodiments.

FIGS. 11A-11B are flow charts for an exemplary Bluetooth connectionprocess performed by a peripheral device in accordance with someembodiments.

FIGS. 12A-12B are flow charts for an exemplary process for transmittinga data packet between a peripheral device and a user device inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 13A-13B are flow charts for an exemplary process for transmittinga data packet between a peripheral device and a user device inaccordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 14A-14B are flow charts for an exemplary process for transmittingmessages for access and controlling a peripheral device over a socialnetworking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 15A-15B are flow charts for an exemplary process for transmittingmessages for access and controlling a peripheral device over a socialnetworking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart for an exemplary process for transmittingmessages for access and controlling a peripheral device over a socialnetworking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 17-20 are block diagrams of various devices and systems operatingin the social networking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 21-24 are block diagrams of various devices and systems operatingin the social networking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

Like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout theseveral views of the drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

A social networking platform provides the network architecture andsoftware that connect people via relationships and/or common interests.On a social networking platform, each user is associated with arespective social network identity by which the user can be identifiedby other users of the social networking platform. On a social networkingplatform, relationships between different users can be formed by mutualagreements of the users involved. When two users agree to form a socialnetworking relationship with each other, they become social networkcontacts of each other. A group of users may opt to form a socialnetworking relationship with one another, and thus forming a socialnetworking group. Each member of the group is a social network contactof every other member of the group. Sometimes, a user or organizationmay establish a public social network identity and allows the public(e.g., any user on the social networking platform) to communicate withit on the social networking platform without a mutual agreementexchange. Sometimes, a user may choose to subscribe to the messages orpublications of the public social network identity (e.g., “follow” thepublic social network identity), and thus becoming a social networkcontact of the public social network identity. The owner of the publicsocial network identity may also treat each user that subscribes to itsmessages or publications as one of its social network contacts on thesocial networking platform.

Each user and each public social network identity on the socialnetworking platform has an associated list of social network contacts(or contacts) with which it/he/she can communicate with through instantmessages over the social networking platform. For example, users withina social networking group may communicate with one another using thesoftware interfaces provided by the provider of the social networkingplatform. In addition, each user may also communicate with another userusing the software interfaces provided by the provider of the socialnetworking platform.

In some embodiments, the software interfaces provided by the provider ofthe social networking platform may be a web interface or a softwareinterface. For example, the users may log onto a web portal of thesocial networking platform, and send and receive messages from otherusers of the social networking platform through the web portal.Alternatively, users may download and install a social networking clientapplication on their respective user devices (e.g., a computer, a smartphone, a tablet device), and use the interfaces provided by the socialnetworking client application to interact with others on the socialnetworking platform. The messages may be in various formats, e.g., text,image, photo, speech, video, emoticons, etc.

Sometimes, a social networking platform allows a user to initiateone-to-one chat sessions or group chat sessions with one or more socialnetwork contacts of the user. During the chat sessions, each userinvolved in the chat may send and receive instant messages of variousformats (e.g., text, speech, image, etc.) to and from other usersinvolved in the chat session.

FIG. 1A is a block diagram of an exemplary operating environment 100 afor a conventional social networking platform in accordance with someembodiments.

As shown in FIG. 1A, a social networking platform provider 102 aprovides a communication server 112 a. The communication server 112 aprovides social networking services (e.g., user registration, creationof messages, transmission of messages, creation of chat sessions, onlineposting, and other online social interactions) to a multitude of usersoperating their respective user devices 104 (e.g., user devices 104 a-c)via one or more networks 106.

In some embodiments, each user interacts with another user by connectingto the communication server 112 a using a social networking clientapplication 108 (e.g., social networking client application 108 a-c)executing on the users' respective user devices 104. The communicationserver 112 a identifies the users in the social network by theirrespective social network identities, such as usernames, nicknames, oraccount identifiers. Typically, each user is associated with a group ofone or more other users in the social network in one or more socialnetwork groups. For example, a user may create or join different socialnetwork groups based on his or her relationships and/or common interestswith other members of each of the groups. In some embodiments, theserver of the social networking platform maintains a knowledge base(e.g., user database 110 a) of different characteristics (e.g., realname, contact information, interest, social economic status, onlineactivity history, etc.) of the users, and their inter-connections andgroup memberships (e.g., group lists and contact lists).

In some embodiments, the social network server provides one or moresocial networking services to its users. The user may invoke aparticular service by interacting with a user interface provided on thesocial networking client application 108 (e.g., social networking clientapplication 108 a-c) of the communication server 112 a. For example, auser may open a chat program, and initiate one or more one-on-one orgroup chat sessions with one or more social contacts (e.g., contacts inthe user's contact list, or social network groups) by sending a text orvoice message. In some embodiments, other forms of messages (e.g.,images, videos, links, icons, animations, etc.) may also be sent fromone user to one or more other users via the social networking platformprovided by the social network sever.

As shown in FIG. 1A, each user may interact with other users using arespective social networking client application 108 (e.g., socialnetworking client application 108 a-c). In some embodiments, the socialnetworking client application provides user interface elements (e.g.,text boxes, buttons, windows, message display areas, etc.) for the userto invoke a particular social network service, such as posting contentto an online message board, sending a text or voice message to aspecific user or group of users, initiating a voice or video chatsession with another user, opening a group chat session, etc.

Examples of the user devices 104 include, but are not limited to, ahandheld computer, a wearable computing device, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a desktopcomputer, a cellular telephone, a smart phone, an enhanced generalpacket radio service (EGPRS) mobile phone, a media player, a navigationdevice, a game console, a television, or a combination of any two ormore of these data processing devices or other data processing devices.

Examples of one or more networks 106 include local area networks (“LAN”)and wide area networks (“WAN”) such as the Internet. One or morenetworks 106 are, optionally, implemented using any known networkprotocol, including various wired or wireless protocols, such asEthernet, Universal Serial Bus (USB), FIREWIRE, Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), codedivision multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA),Bluetooth, WiFi, voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), Wi-MAX, or anyother suitable communication protocol.

Communication Server 112 a is implemented on one or more standalone dataprocessing apparatuses or a distributed network of computers. In someembodiments, communication server 112 a also employs various virtualdevices and/or services of third party service providers (e.g.,third-party cloud service providers) to provide the underlying computingresources and/or infrastructure resources of communication server 112 a.

In a conventional social networking platform, each user device 104 mayoptionally include one or more internal peripheral device modules or beconnected to one or more peripheral devices (e.g., navigation systems,health monitors, climate controls, smart sports equipment, Bluetoothheadsets, smart watches, etc.) via wired or wireless connections. Inmost cases, each of these peripheral devices is controlled by arespective software application provided by a respective manufacturer ofthe peripheral device, and the social networking client application 108does not communicate with these peripheral devices. Sometimes, theprovider of the social networking client application implementsfunctions in the social networking client application that operate someperipheral devices (e.g., a camera, a speaker, a microphone, a touchpanel, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch screen) of the user device. But thefunctions are limited to using these peripheral devices as a means toobtain user input (e.g., image, voice, text, touch, mouse movement,etc.) to control the operation of the client application (e.g., navigatearound the user interface, invoking a control in the user interface, orcompose an instant message) or delivery of outputs of the clientapplication (e.g., voice, sound, user interfaces, etc.) to the user. Inthese conventional systems, there is no direct communication between theuser and the peripheral devices over the social networking platform. Itis also impractical for the provider of the social networking clientapplication to expand support for controlling other types of peripheraldevices due to development complexity, costs, and huge design variationsamong the different peripheral devices.

As people become increasingly reliant on various electronic peripheraldevices (e.g., smart watches, health monitors, music players, climatecontrols, smart coffee makers, charging stations, navigation systems,sports equipment, set-top boxes, etc.) for various tasks in their dailylives, they are also burdened by the varied user interfaces (i.e., thedifferent user interfaces of the proprietary software applicationsdesigned specifically by the manufacturers of the different peripheraldevices) that they have to master to control these different types ofperipheral devices. Furthermore, the same type of peripheral devicesdesigned by different manufacturers may not be able to share informationwith one another due to the different communication protocols and dataformats of the peripheral devices made by different manufacturers. It istherefore challenging for users to explore and learn the different userinterfaces and functions of different products they purchase. It is evenmore difficult for the users to share information created or gathered intheir own gadgets with others who may or may not possess the same typesof devices.

The present disclosure describes a method and device for controllingperipheral devices via a social networking platform. As stated above inthe background, social networking has becoming increasingly prevalent intoday's world. Many people are already very familiar with the operationsand controls of the social networking client applications for one ormore social networking platforms. Enabling access and control ofperipheral devices over social network messages (e.g., instant messagesin a natural language) sent and received over a social networkingplatform help users to avoid learning many proprietary user interfacesfor different peripheral devices and making the communication with theperipheral devices more natural and intuitive. Furthermore, simpleunified user interface controls can be provided for peripheral devicesmade by different manufacturers, allowing users to easily shareinformation across peripheral devices of different manufactures anddevice types. In addition, in some embodiments, each device manufacturercan adopt the communication protocol (e.g., including protocols fordevice registration, device discovery, communication of instructions andresponses, presentation of information, translation of encodedinstructions and responses to and from the peripheral devices tomessages in human-readable form, etc.) established by the socialnetworking platform provider. Thus, the peripheral devices can rely on acommunication server of the social networking platform and user devicesconnected to the communication server to forward the instructions andmessages encoded in the manufacturer's proprietary format to and fromthe peripheral devices of the user devices. Furthermore, in someembodiments, the encoded instructions and messages can be encapsulatedin messages formatted according to the communication protocolsestablished by the communication server, thus, the communication serverdoes not need to separately implement the logic and functions tointerpret the encoded instructions messages for each type of peripheraldevices. The load of developing support capabilities of the peripheraldevices are thus shifted to the manufacturers of the different types ofperipheral devices. This way, the users enjoy a simple, unified,familiar way to control different types of peripheral devices via thefamiliar user interface of the social networking client application, andto share information with other users and their respective peripheraldevices that may or may not be of the same type or made by the samemanufacturers. In addition, the provider of the social networkingplatform need not expend an extraordinary amount of resources to expandthe type of peripheral devices that it supports.

In the present disclosure, various embodiments illustrate theinter-relationships between different parties involved in providingaccess and controls of peripheral devices via a social networkingplatform, including servers of manufacturers or support serviceproviders (e.g., also referred to as “support servers”) for theperipheral devices, the server(s) of the social networking platform(e.g., also referred to as “communication servers”), the user devices(e.g., the main user device that executes the social networking clientapplication and used to communicate with the communication server), theusers, and the peripheral devices (e.g., the devices that communicatewith others through a main user device to which it has established acommunication connection) to be controlled via the social networkingplatform.

As demonstrated by various use case scenarios in the present disclosure,providing convenient, fun, and interactive control of peripheral devicesthrough a social networking platform may help enhancing user experience,shorten software development and support for peripheral device makers.As described herein, in some embodiments, the method of providing accessand control of peripheral devices via a social networking platform, suchas a blog-platform, an online forum platform, a message board platform,a micro-blog platform, an instant message platform, an online chat-roomplatform, and a hybrid of one or more of the above platforms enables awealth of possibilities previous unavailable to the users and theperipheral device manufacturers.

FIG. 1B is a block diagram of an exemplary operating environment 100 bfor a social networking platform that supports access and control ofperipheral devices via the social networking platform, in accordancewith some embodiments.

As shown in FIG. 1B, a social networking platform provider 102 bprovides a communication server 112 b. The social networking platformprovider 102 b and the communication server 112 b are able to performall of the conventional functions that a conventional social networkingplatform provider (e.g., the social networking platform provider 102 a)and a conventional communication server (e.g., the communication server112 a) can perform. In addition, the social networking platform provider102 b also implements the communication server 112 b to enable accessand control of peripheral devices (e.g., peripheral devices 118)according to the embodiments described herein.

As shown in FIG. 1B, each user of the social networking platformcommunicate with the communication server 112 b through a respectivesocial networking client application 108 (e.g., social networking clientapplications 108 c-e) executing on a respective user device 104 (e.g.,user devices 104 a-c). Each user device 104 may be connected to one ormore peripheral devices 118 (e.g., 118 a, 118 b, and/or 118 c) via awired or wireless connection. Examples of the connection type includeUniversal Serial Bus (USB), FIREWIRE, Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), codedivision multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA),Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), WiFi, voice over InternetProtocol (VoIP), Wi-MAX, or other connections established based on anyother suitable communication protocols. Typically, each peripheraldevice is connected to a respective user device through a connectionwith a relative short range (e.g., a few meters or tens of meters),although such limitations are not necessary for many types of peripheraldevices. Examples of the peripheral devices include, but are not limitedto, smart watches, health monitors (e.g., heart rate or blood pressuremonitors, pacemakers, lifestyle monitoring wristbands, etc.), musicplayers, climate controls (e.g., weather monitors, temperature control,heaters, air conditioners, humidity controls, etc.), lighting controls,security monitoring systems, smart coffee makers, charging stations(e.g., charging station for electric cars or electronic equipments,etc.), navigation systems (e.g., GPS systems), sports equipment (e.g.,smart golf clubs, smart fishing poles, smart basketballs, etc.), set-topboxes (e.g., online streaming set-top boxes, online gaming devices,etc.), etc. These peripheral devices may still be provided withproprietary software applications that is separately installed andusable independent of the social networking client application. Inaddition, the peripheral devices may also optionally include physicalhardware buttons and controls or built-in onboard screens and softwareinterfaces for users to control directly.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the communication server 112 b includes userdatabase 110 b that includes the information of each user accountregistered with the communication server 112 b. The user database 110 bis analogous to the user database 110 a in FIG. 1A. In addition, thecommunication server 112 b also includes a device database 110 c. Thedevice database 110 c stores identifiers for the peripheral devices thathave been registered with the communication server 112 b using thedevice registration methods described herein. The device database 110 calso includes the data regarding the relationships between theperipheral devices, their respective users, their respective main userdevices, their respective support servers, etc.

In some embodiments, each registered peripheral device is provided witha respective social network identity (e.g., analogous to the socialnetworking identity of a human user) by which the registered peripheraldevice can be identified by its human owner (e.g., a human useroperating a main user device to which the peripheral device is connectedto), other users, the communication server, and the support serverprovided by the manufacturer of the peripheral device. Thecharacteristics of each registered peripheral device as well as the useraccount or user device to which it is currently associated with (e.g.,connected to) are stored in the device database 110 c under therespective social network identity of the registered peripheral device.In some embodiments, each registered peripheral device is associatedwith a user account or user device as a social network contact of theuser account currently associated with the user device (e.g., the useraccount currently logged in at the user device). In some embodiments,other users, its support server, other peripheral devices may beassociated with a registered peripheral device as social networkcontacts of the registered peripheral device in the device database 110c.

In some embodiments, a peripheral device may communicate with its humanowner (e.g., the user of the user device to which the peripheral deviceis currently connected), another peripheral device (e.g., anotherperipheral device connected to the same user device, or anotherperipheral device connected to another user device), another user (e.g.,a social network contact of the human owner), and/or a support server,using its own social network identity. In some embodiments, a peripheraldevice may communicate with its human owner through a respective deviceidentity established under the public social network identity of itssupport server. In some embodiments, each registered device does notpossess a social network identity separate from the user account underwhich it is registered. In some embodiments, a peripheral device maycommunicate with another peripheral device, another user, a supportserver through a respective device identity established under the socialnetwork identity of its human owner. In some embodiments, the devicedatabase 110 c may be merged into the user database 110 b, such that annetwork identity of a peripheral device resembles the network identityof a human user or a support server, e.g., including respective contactlists, log-in status, communication history, etc.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the communication server 112 b also communicateswith one or more support servers 116 (e.g., support servers 116 a-c)provided by one or more respective peripheral device manufacturers orsupport service providers (e.g., peripheral device manufacturers 114a-b). In some embodiments, each of the support service providers haveimplemented the support servers 116 according to the protocol standardsestablished by the social networking platform provider 102 b, such thatencoded instructions for accessing and controlling their respectivetypes of peripheral devices can be transmitted to the peripheral devices(e.g., peripheral devices 118 a-c) through the social network platform(e.g., via the communication server 112 b, and the social networkingclient applications 108 c-e executing on the user devices 104 a-c).

In some embodiments, the communication server 112 b and the socialnetworking client applications 108 c-e does not perform interpretationand/or translations of the encoded instructions, and the decoding of theencoded instructions are performed at the target of the encodedinstructions (e.g., at the peripheral devices). Correspondingly, in someembodiments, the social networking client application (e.g.,applications 108 c-e) executing on the user devices 104 have beenimplemented according to the protocol standards established by thesocial networking platform provider 102 b, such that encoded messagesfor the peripheral devices 118 a-c can be transmitted to theirrespective support servers (e.g., support servers 116 a-c) through thesocial network platform (e.g., including through the communicationserver 112 b. In some embodiments, the communication server 112 b andthe social networking client applications 108 c-e does not performinterpretation and/or translations of the encoded messages, and thedecoding of the encoded messages are performed at the target of theencoded messages (e.g., at the support servers 116 a-c).

In some embodiments, the support servers 116 sending the encodedinstructions and receiving the encoded messages optionally generatecorresponding instant messages in human-readable forms (e.g., instantmessages in textual, tabular, image, graphic, sound, and/or speechforms), and sends the instant messages to one or more users (e.g., theowner of the peripheral devices or other users with which the owner hasshared information or control of the peripheral devices) via thecommunication server 112 b. In some embodiments, the human-readablemessages are presented on the user interfaces of the social networkingclient applications 108 c-e as instant messages sent from the socialnetworking identity of the support server to the social network identityof the human owner and/or peripheral device. Similarly, in someembodiments, these human-readable messages are presented on the userinterfaces of the social networking client applications 108 c-e asinstant messages sent from the social networking identity of theperipheral device to the social network identity of the support serverand/or human owner.

In some embodiments, the communication server 112 b optionallyimplements translation of the encoded instructions and encoded messagesfor communications that do not involve the support server. For example,the communication server 112 b optionally translates instructionsoriginated from a human user and targeting a registered peripheraldevice (e.g., an instruction submitted via one or more instant messagesor selection of one or more user interface controls provided in thesocial networking client application 108 c-e) into the correspondingencoded instructions understood by the peripheral device, therebyaccomplishing access and control of the peripheral device by the humanuser via the social networking platform. In addition, the communicationserver 112 b optionally translates encoded messages originated from aregistered peripheral device and targeting a human user into ahuman-readable form (e.g., one or more instant messages to the user).

The communications that can be accomplished over the social platform canbe between a peripheral device and its human owner with or without theparticipation of the support server; between a peripheral device and itssupport server with or without the participation of the human owner ofthe peripheral device; between a human owner of a peripheral device andthe support server of the peripheral device with or without theparticipation of the peripheral device; between different users with orwithout the participation of their respective peripheral devices, andwith or without the participation of the support servers of theirrespective peripheral devices; between two or more peripheral deviceswith or without the participation of their respective human owners,and/or with or without their respective support servers; between a userand a peripheral device of another user, with or without theparticipation of the other user, and/or with or without theparticipation of the support server of the peripheral device. Othercommunication configurations are possible and apparent in light of thevarious examples provided herein.

Before providing more details on the different aspects of theembodiments described herein, a simple exemplary usage scenario ispresented first. In an exemplary usage scenario, an exemplary bindingprocess is performed first to bind a peripheral device to a user devicethat executes a social networking client application, and to bind theperipheral device to a respective user account currently operating thesocial networking client application.

During the exemplary device binding process, a user launches a socialnetworking client application (e.g., an instant messaging clientapplication that implements the methods described herein) on a userdevice (e.g., a smart phone, a tablet device, or a portable computer).The user logs into his/her user account at a communication server of thesocial networking platform through a log-in interface of the socialnetworking client application. Subsequent communications between theuser device and the communication server will occur under the useraccount of the user. Provided in the user interface of the socialnetworking client application is a barcode scanner interface that canscan a barcode (e.g., via a camera of the user device). In someembodiments, the manufacturer of a peripheral device provides a 2Dbarcode on the peripheral device, and the 2D barcode includes thenecessary information that the communication server of the socialnetworking platform needs to uniquely identify the peripheral device orthe maker of the peripheral device, such as a URL of the manufacturerand/or a device ID of the peripheral device. Once the user has agreed toproceed with the binding process and the barcode information istransmitted from the user device to the communication server of thesocial networking platform under the user account of the user, thecommunication server binds the peripheral device to the user account. Inother words, the communication server of the social networking platformcreates a unique social network identity for the peripheral device, andadds the peripheral device to the list of social network contacts of theuser under the user account. In some embodiments, the communicationsever also creates a respective social networking identity for ansupport server of the support service provider for the peripheraldevice, and adds the support server to the list of social networkcontacts of the user under the user account.

In some embodiments, the binding process does not require the peripheraldevice to be connected to the user device. After the binding process iscompleted, the peripheral device can be connected to the user deviceunder the social network identity created for the peripheral device atany time. The communication from the peripheral device to thecommunication server of the social network platform can be accomplishedthrough the user device as an intermediary. During an exemplary deviceconnection process, the user device automatically scans for nearbyperipheral devices that broadcast a unique service identifier of thesocial network client application. The peripheral device has beenpreconfigured by the manufacturer to broadcast in its device discoverymessages the unique service identifier of the social network clientapplication. The social network client application executing on the userdevice scans for and detects that the peripheral device's devicediscovery messages includes the required service identifier, andestablishes a connection (e.g., a Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy, WiFi,USB, etc. connection) with the peripheral device. Once the connectionhas been established, the social network client application notifies thecommunication server of the social networking platform that theperipheral device is now online. The social network client applicationalso indicates in a user interface to the user that the peripheraldevice is now online and available to communicate with the user associal network contacts over the social networking platform. In someembodiments, the user device does not try to establish the connectionwith the peripheral device until the user has selected a user interfacecontrol to start a conversation session with the peripheral device inthe social networking client application. In some embodiments, the userdevice scans for and tries to establish a connection with the peripheraldevice when the user first logs into his/her user account. In someembodiments, the user does not have to use the same user device for thebinding process and the connection process. The user device referred toin the description of the binding process and the connection process isthe user device that is currently executing the social networking clientapplication (including a browser showing a web interface for the socialnetworking platform) and that has the user's account as the currentlyactive user account.

After the peripheral device has established a connection with the userdevice within the social networking client application under the useraccount of the user, the user is able to communicate with the peripheraldevice as a social network contact on the social networking platform.For example, if the peripheral device is a health monitoring wrist bandthat has been connected to the user device (e.g., a smart phone) via aBluetooth or Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connection within the socialnetworking client application under the user account of the user, theuser can optionally start a chat session with the wrist band like he/shewould with any other social network contact of his/hers. For example,the user may choose to send an instant text message to the wrist bandduring the chat session, saying “Show me today's data” or “Light up thescreen.” The instant text message will be presented in the conversationinterface of the chat session as a message sent from the user to therespective social network identity of the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the social networking client application provides acustomized user interface to the user when the user selects to start aconversation session with the wrist band, and within the customized userinterface, the social networking client application presents one or morebuttons representing different commands that may be issued to the wristband. For example, the customized user interface may present a buttonfor “output today's data”, a button for “show battery level”, and abutton for “vibrate”. When the user invokes one of the buttons (e.g.,the button for “vibrate”), a corresponding command will be presented onthe conversation interface of the chat session as a message from theuser to the respective social network identity of the peripheral device.The command will also be translated into an encoded instruction by thecommunication server or support server of the peripheral device, andsent to the peripheral device via the communication server and the userdevice. The wrist band receiving the encoded instruction will respondaccordingly, e.g., by start vibrating.

In some embodiments, regardless of whether the user has entered theinstruction/command to the peripheral device by typing, by speech, byinvoking a button, or by any other means, the instruction/command issent from the user device to the communication server, which obtains thecorresponding encoded instruction/command (e.g., either by doing aninternal translation itself, or by contacting the support server of theperipheral device) and sends the translation back to the user device.The user device forwards the encoded instruction/command to theperipheral device through the connection that has been establishedbetween the user device and the peripheral device. The peripheral deviceresponds or acts in accordance with the encoded instruction/command. Forexample, the wrist band will start vibrating after the user has entereda text message “vibrate” in the chat interface or invoked a button for“vibrate” in the customized user interface the social networking clientapplication has provided for the wrist band. This would be useful whenthe user cannot locate the wrist band in her vicinity, and wishes to usehis/her social network client application to talk to the wrist band suchthat the wrist band can respond by making a noise for the user to findit.

Sometimes, the user may include additional user(s) and/or otherperipheral device(s) in a chat session between the user and theperipheral device. For example, the user can create a group chat sessionincluding the respective social network identities of any other user(s)or peripheral devices that have been registered with the communicationserver by their respective owners and are currently online via theirrespective owner's user accounts. For example, if the user's peripheraldevice is a blood pressure monitor, the user may start a group chatsession involving the user him/herself, the user's family members, andthe blood pressure monitor. After the user has put the arm wrap of theblood pressure monitor around his/her arm, the user may enter a textmessage (e.g., “start measuring”) to the blood pressure monitor (e.g.,by using @XXX in the message body) in the group chat interface, orinvoke a button for “start” in the customized group chat interface. Theconversation interface of the group chat session will show the user'sinstruction as an instant message “Start today's blood pressuremeasurement” sent from the user to the blood pressure monitor. Thecommunication server obtains the user's instruction and according to theuser's instruction obtains the corresponding encoded instruction for theblood pressure monitor. The communication server sends the encodedinstruction to the blood pressure monitor via the user device, and theblood pressure monitor responds to the encoded instruction by startmeasuring the user's blood pressure. In some embodiments, the bloodpressure monitor optionally sends an encoded response to the user deviceregarding the progress and final results of the blood pressuremeasurement. The user device sends the encoded response to thecommunication server, and the communication server obtains thecorresponding human-readable data according to the content of theencoded response. The communication server sends the human readable datato the users involved in the group chat as one or more chat messages(e.g., “Starting to measure blood pressure, please keep still.” “Youblood pressure today is 120/60, very good.” “Measurement completed,please remove the arm wrap.” etc.). Each user currently in the groupchat will see these chat messages on their respective user devices as amessage from the blood pressure monitor to the whole group or to each ofthem individually.

More example usage scenarios and embodiments will be provided below.

FIGS. 2A-2H are exemplary user interfaces for setting up access andcontrol of a peripheral device via a social networking clientapplication in accordance with some embodiments.

In some embodiments, to set up access and control of a peripheraldevice, the user first requests the communication server to bind theperipheral device to the user's account on the social networkingplatform. After the peripheral device has been bound to the user'saccount, the user device scans for the peripheral device and establishesa connection to the peripheral device if the peripheral device is found.FIGS. 2A-2H illustrate a process for setting up control for an exemplaryperipheral device 200 (e.g., one of the peripheral devices 118 in FIG.2B), through an exemplary user device 202 (e.g., one of the user devices104 in FIG. 2B) executing a social networking client applicationoperating under an exemplary user account “Red207”.

As shown in FIG. 2A, in some embodiments, a manufacturer of theperipheral device 200 (e.g., a health monitoring wrist band) provides a2D barcode on the packaging or the body of the peripheral device 200,where the 2D barcode encodes a unique identifier 201 for the peripheraldevice 200, or a unique identifier for an support server of theperipheral device 200 which will provide support services for the typeof peripheral devices including the peripheral device 200. Other formatof the unique device identifier is possible.

FIG. 2B shows that the user with a user account named “Red207” hasstarted a social networking client application on the user device 202(e.g., a smart phone) and invoked a function to add a hardware contactprovided in the social networking client application. The user placesthe 2D barcode under the scanner (e.g., a built-in camera of the smartphone), and invokes the scan button 204 to scan the 2D barcode. In someembodiments, the user interface control for start scanning the barcodeof a peripheral device is the same as the user interface control forstarting scanning the barcode (e.g., a QR code) assigned to any otheruser of the social network platform. The communication server determineson the backend whether the user wishes to add a new human contact or ahardware contact based on the identifier obtained in the barcode.

FIG. 2C shows that the user device 202 has successfully scanned thebarcode and recognized the identifier of the peripheral device that theuser wishes to bind to his/her account. The name (e.g., “Q-Band™”) ofthe peripheral device 200 is displayed to the user. In some embodiments,the model number (e.g., “Model X2000”) is also optionally displayed tothe user. Once the user confirms that the reading of the barcode agreeswith his/her expectation, the user can invoke the “bind” button 206 tobind the peripheral device 200 to the user account “Red207”. Theinvocation of the “bind” button 206 causes the user device 202 to sendthe binding instruction to the communication server of the socialnetworking platform, and the communication server creates a bindingbetween the user's account and the identifier of the peripheral device.Sometimes, if the barcode assigned to the peripheral device 200 is notunique (e.g., is a common barcode assigned for all of a type ofperipheral devices (e.g., a particular device model) or a supportservice provider for one or more types of peripheral devices), thebinding process creates a unique device identifier for the peripheraldevice based on the user account identifier and the identifier encodedin the barcode (e.g., by concatenating the username and the commondevice identifier). The communication server also creates a socialnetworking identity for the peripheral device 200, including all or atleast some of the features of a human user (e.g., including a user name,an avatar, an account type, an online status, a contact list, a socialnetwork group list, a conversation history, a fan list (e.g., “otherusers that follow me”), a list of subscriptions (e.g., “other users I amfollowing”), etc.). In some embodiments, the communication server alsoindicates that the peripheral device 200's account is a device account,and is associated with a respective user account (e.g., “Red207”).

FIG. 2D shows that the binding process has been successfully completed.The communication server notifies the user that the peripheral device200 (with a temporary online identity of “Q-Band”) has been bound to theuser's account. The user can optionally change the nickname of theperipheral device 200 to other names that are more appealing to the user(e.g., “Red's Q-Band”).

FIG. 2E shows a list of contacts that are currently associated with theuser account “Red207”. The list of contacts includes other human users(e.g., “Annie”, “Mom”, and “Reddog”) with whom the user has previouslyestablished a mutual social networking relationship. FIG. 2E also showsthat the list of contacts also includes the social network identity 208of the peripheral device (e.g., “Q-Band”). In some embodiments, the listof contacts also includes a public social network identity 210 of asupport service provider 2 (e.g., “Q-Support”) for the newly addedperipheral device 200. At this point, the icon for the peripheral deviceis shaded in a way to indicate that the peripheral device 200corresponding to the social network identity “Q-Band” is not currentlyconnected to the user device 202. After the peripheral device 200 isconnected to the user device 202, the communication server is notifiedof the connection, and the appearance of the icon for the peripheraldevice will change to indicate that the active online status of theperipheral device 200 is now connected.

FIG. 2F shows that when the user invokes the icon of the peripheraldevice 200 in the contact list shown in FIG. 2E, the user device 202initiates a connection process to scan for and connect to the peripheraldevice 200 associated with the social network identity “Q-Band”. In someembodiments, the manufacturer of the peripheral device 200 and theprovider of the social networking client application agrees on aparticular connection protocol (e.g., a Bluetooth™ or Bluetooth LowEnergy, or WiFi connection protocol), such that the social networkingclient application can discover the type of peripheral devices that haveimplemented the methods described herein. More details on the connectionprotocol are provided later in the present disclosure. When the userdevice 202 discovers the presence of the peripheral device 200 throughthe scanning process, the detected peripheral device 200 is matched tothe social network identity of the peripheral device 200, and displayedto the user on the user device 202. After the peripheral device 200 isconnected to the user device 202, the communication server is notifiedof the connection, and the appearance of the icon for the peripheraldevice will change (not shown) to indicate that the peripheral device200 is now connected.

FIG. 2G shows that once the peripheral device 200 and the user device202 has established a connection in the social networking clientapplication, a chat session can be established between the user and theperipheral device 200 in a manner similar to establishing a chat sessionbetween two users (e.g., by selecting the peripheral device 200 in thecontact list and choosing to send a message to the peripheral device200). In some embodiments, a conversation interface for a chat sessionbetween the peripheral device 200 and the user “Red207” is automaticallystarted when the connection is first established. In the conversationinterface 212 displayed on the user device 202, the peripheral device200 has send a message 214 to the user (e.g., “Hi Red207! I am yourQ-Band

”). This message 214 is provided to the user device 202 by thecommunication server. The process for the communication server to obtainthis message may vary in different embodiments. In some embodiments, theuser device 202 forwards the encoded message (e.g., an “Init OK”message) received from the peripheral device 200 to the communicationserver, and the communication server either translates the encodedmessage to the message 214 by itself or asks the support server of thesupport service provider for the peripheral device 200 to translate theencoded message to the message 214. More details of how encoded messagesare transmitted from the peripheral devices, processed by the userdevice, the communication server, and/or the support server,communicated to the user, and memorialized in the conversation historyare provided in other parts of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2G also shows that the conversation interface 212 of the currentchat session optionally includes a message input box 218 through whichthe user may enter a text message (e.g., “Light the display”) to theperipheral device 200. The conversation interface 212 optionally includeone or more user interface controls for invoking specific commonly usedfunctions of the peripheral device 200. For example, the conversationinterface 212 optionally includes a button 216 for lighting up theperipheral device 200 (e.g., a health monitoring wrist band) to test thecommunication channel and function of the peripheral device 200. Theconversation interface 212 optionally includes other buttons (e.g., a“print data” button) for invoking other functions of the peripheraldevice 200. When the user presses the “Light” button 216, a signal issent to the communication server indicating that the user has pressedthe “Light” button 216. The communication server obtains thecorresponding encoded instruction for the peripheral device 200, andsends the encoded instruction back to the user device 202. The userdevice then forwards the encoded instruction to the peripheral devicethrough the connection established between the user device and theperipheral device. The peripheral device then interprets and carries outthe command in the encoded instruction, and optionally sends back anencoded response (e.g., an encoded response indicating successfulcompletion of the requested task).

In some embodiments, the development of the user interface controls canbe accomplished through the cooperation between the manufacturer of theperipheral device 200 and the provider of the social networkingplatform. In some embodiments, the communication server only needs toknow what functions the manufacturer prefers to include in theconversation interface for its product (e.g., the peripheral device200), and the communication server does not need to perform any actualtranslation and/or interpretation of the commands and messages that arereceived from the user and/or the peripheral device 202 through the userdevice 202. For example, in some embodiments, the communication serverneed not perform the conversion from an instant message or functionbutton press entered by the user to a corresponding encoded instructiontargeting the peripheral device. Instead, the communication serverforwards the user-requested function to the support server of thesupport service provider for the peripheral device, and receives thecorresponding encoded instruction from the support server. Thecommunication server in turn forwards the encoded instruction to theperipheral device through the user device. In some embodiments, thecommunication server also need not perform the conversion from theencoded message received from the peripheral device to an instantmessage shown to the user. Instead, the communication server forwardsthe encoded message to the support server of the support serviceprovider for the peripheral device, and receives a correspondingtranslation of the encoded message. The communication server in turnsends the translation as an instant message to the user as a messagefrom the peripheral device to the user. In some embodiments, thecommunication server optionally performs the conversions by itself,e.g., through the use of a mapping table between natural languagemessages/button presses and encoded instructions/messages.

FIG. 2H shows that after the user has entered a text message (e.g.,“Light display”) or pressed the “Light” button 216, the correspondingencoded instruction is sent from the communication server to the userdevice 202, and then from the user device 202 to the peripheral device200. The corresponding instant message 220 is displayed in theconversation interface 212 as a message from the user to Q-Band. Afterthe peripheral device 200 performs the requested function, theperipheral device 200 sends a response (e.g., an encoded responseindicating completion of the task to light the display of the healthmonitoring wrist band) to the user. The response is displayed as aninstant message 222 (e.g., “Done! Display is lit”) from Q-Band to theuser in the conversation interface 212. In some embodiments, when theperipheral device 212 wishes to send a message to the user, the messageis in an encoded form (e.g., formatted according to the proprietaryformat of the device manufacturer). The encoded message is sent to theuser device 202, and the user device 202 forwards it to thecommunication server. The communication server optionally forwards it tothe support server and obtains a translation of the encoded message fromthe support server. The communication server then sends the translationas an instant message to the user device 202. The translation ispresented to the user as an instant message from the peripheral device“Q-Band” to the user “Red207”.

The user interfaces shown in FIGS. 2A-2H and the features described withrespect thereto are merely illustrative of the embodiments possible. Insome embodiments, more function buttons are included in an extendedconversation interface that can be invoked via a control displayed on asimple version of the conversation interface. In some embodiments, theuser is provided with a configuration interface that allows the user toset up buttons for the most frequently used commands and instructions.In some embodiments, the social networking client application allows theuser to enter natural language instructions and commands via a textinput box or a speech input interface, and the communication serverreceiving the natural language instructions and commands optionallygenerates an interpretation of the user's command through a local orthird-party natural language processing service. The communicationserver then forwards the interpretation to the support server of theperipheral device for translation into the encoded instructions. Moredetails on how the instructions and responses are transmitted betweenthe different layers of the communication architecture (e.g., supportserver ← → communication server ← → user device(s)← → user(s) andperipheral device(s)) are provided later in the present disclosure.

FIG. 2I is a simplified process flow illustrating a process for a devicemanufacturer to establish support for one or more types of itsperipheral devices through the provider of the social networkingplatform. For example, the manufacturer (e.g., equipment developer ofthe peripheral device) submits (231) a request for a service account(e.g., an account for a support server of a support service provider fora type of peripheral devices made by the manufacturer). In someembodiments, the manufacturer or equipment developer submits the name,model number, basic functions, and functions to be supported by thesocial networking platform to the provider of the social networkingplatform. The provider of the social networking platform reviews therequest, and determines (233) whether to accept the request according tointernal or published guidelines. If the provider of the socialnetworking platform decides to accept the request, the developer isnotified of the acceptance and the manufacturer or equipment developerproceeds (235) to develop functions to be implemented through thecommunication server of the social networking platform. If the providerof the social networking platform does not accept the request, theequipment developer can go back and modify the request and resubmit orterminate the request process.

When the approved functions are implemented by the equipment developer,the functions will be reviewed (237) by the provider of the socialnetworking platform for quality assurance. Once the functions areapproved again through testing, the support for the type of peripheraldevices identified in the request is formally released to the public,and the communication server will now accept registration requests forperipheral devices of this supported type, and establish a respectivesocial network identity for the support server of the peripheral deviceson the social networking platform. After the public release, themanufacturer and equipment developer for the supported peripheraldevices may start (239) manufacturing and/or selling the peripheraldevices to the end users. In some embodiments, the provider of thesocial networking platform will also assign a unique identifier to thesupport server for the supported type of peripheral devices, which canbe provided to the buyers of the peripheral devices that aremanufactured at the time of sale. For example, the identifier may beprovided as a 2D barcode attached to the peripheral device or itspackaging, or provided as a unique serial number included with theperipheral device.

FIG. 2J is a simplified process flow illustrating a process for an enduser to register a particular peripheral device using a user device(e.g., a mobile device) with the communication server of the socialnetworking platform. As shown in FIG. 2J, when the end user provides thedevice ID to the user device at the time of device registration, theuser device captures (241) the device ID provided by the user (e.g.,through a 2D barcode on the peripheral device or through a direct textinput). The user device determines (243) whether the device ID has beensuccessfully captured. If the user device does not recognize the deviceID after consulting a database stored at the communication server, theprocess ends. If the user device determines that a correct device ID fora supported peripheral device has been captured, the user device obtains(345) an account for the peripheral device from the communication serverof the social networking platform. For example, in some embodiments, theuser device sends the device ID to the communication server, and thecommunication server generates the appropriate social network identityfor the peripheral device based on the device ID and the user's own ID,and creates the account for the peripheral device. The account for theperipheral device is also associated with the user's own account by thecommunication server. Once the account has been generated, thecommunication server sends the account information to the user device.The user device determines (247) whether the account for the peripheraldevice has been successfully generated. If so, the user device can start(249) exchanging information (e.g., instructions and responses) with theperipheral device. The information includes encoded instructionsoriginated from the support server of the peripheral device and sent tothe user device through the communication server, encoded instructionsfrom the communication server directly, encoded response from theperipheral device directed to the support server, the communicationserver, other devices, and/or the user, etc.

FIGS. 2K-2T illustrate message translation and flow in variouscommunication scenarios involving accessing and controlling a peripheraldevice over a social networking platform in accordance with someembodiments. Different combinations of the communication scenarios maybe present in a conversation involving more than one communication froman originating party to a target party. Each of a user, a peripheraldevice, a support server, and a communication server may be theoriginating party (also referred to as an “originator”) or the targetparty (also referred to as a “target”) of a particular communicationmessage (e.g., an encoded instruction, an encoded message, or an instantmessage). Each of a user device, a support server, and a communicationserver may serve as an intermediate transmitter of the particularcommunication message originated by other parties and targeting otherparties. In some embodiments, direct messages to the communicationserver, e.g., direct messages originated from the support server, auser, or a peripheral device are permitted, but since the communicationserver is usually not considered one of the conversation participants ina chat session, these messages are not depicted herein. As used herein,if a message is directed at a particular party, the message is said tobe “@” that party in FIGS. 2K-2T, and that party is the target of themessage, even if the message may pass one or more other parties duringtransit from its source to the target. The party that initiated amessage or instruction is the originator of the message or instruction,even if the initiation of the message is in response to another messageor instruction previously received by the originator.

As depicted herein, the messages originating from a peripheral deviceare called “encoded messages”, and the encoded message follow the nativeI/O and data format of the peripheral device. In some embodiments,encoded messages from some types of peripheral devices may behuman-readable, but such is not required. In some embodiments, if anencoded message from a particular peripheral device is directed to ahuman user, the encoded message is transmitted to the support server ofthe peripheral device first to be translated into a human-readableinstant message, and the human-readable instant message is then sent tothe user (via the user's user device) instead of the encoded message. Insome embodiments, if an instant message from a particular user isdirected to a peripheral device, the instant message is transmitted tothe support server of the peripheral device first to be translated intoan encoded instruction for the peripheral device, and the encodedinstruction is then sent to the peripheral device (via the user's userdevice) instead of the instant message. In some embodiments, thecommunication server forwards an original message to the support serverand obtains a translation of the original message suitable for thetarget of the original message. In some embodiments, for at least asubset of the original messages, the communication server generates thetranslation locally without contacting the support server. In someembodiments, when the support server is the originator of a message orinstruction, the support server provides the message or instruction inthe correct format (e.g., either as an instant message or as an encodedinstruction) depending on the target party of the message.

FIG. 2K depicts a communication scenario in which a user initiates aninstruction (e.g., “Turn off air conditioner.”) targeting a peripheraldevice 118 (e.g., a climate control device), in a user interfaceprovided by a social networking client application 108 executing on auser device 104 (e.g., a smart phone). In this and the following examplescenarios, the user has already logged into his/her account at thecommunication server 112; the peripheral device 104 is a supporteddevice of the support server 116, and has been registered by the userunder his/her account; and the peripheral device and the user devicehave established a connection under the social networking clientapplication. For illustrative purposes, assume that the user's socialnetwork identity is “User” and the social networking identity of theperipheral device 118 is “Peripheral” in this example.

In this example, the flow of the message(s) is as follows:

(1) The user optionally inputs the instruction by typing an instantmessage “Turn off air conditioner” or by invoking a user interfacecontrol (e.g., a “Turn Off” button) for turning off the peripheraldevice 118 provided in a conversation interface for a chat sessionbetween “User” and “Peripheral”. In a one-to-one chat session, a messagefrom one participant automatically targets the other participant of thechat session. Thus, the message entered by the user is an instantmessage that targets the peripheral device 108. In some embodiments, theinvocation of a preset user interface control corresponds to an instantmessage that targets the peripheral device 108, and is represented inthe conversation log as such.

(2) The instant message originated from the user and targeting theperipheral device 118 is transmitted from the user device 104 to thecommunication server 112.

(3) The communication server 112 receives the instant message andfurther transmits it to the support server of the peripheral device. Thecommunication server obtains the identities of the user and theperipheral device from the originator and target fields of the instantmessage. Based on the identity of the peripheral device, thecommunication server determines the identity of the support server forthe peripheral device.

(4) The support server 112 receives the instant message, and recognizesthat it is a human-readable message, and needs to be translated into aformat that is acceptable to the peripheral device 118. The supportserver 112 interprets the received instant message, and maps it to anencoded instruction targeting the peripheral device 118. The supportserver 112 sends the encoded instruction to the communication server,the encoded instruction targeting the peripheral device 118.

(5) The communication server 112 receives the encoded instructiontargeting the peripheral device from the support server 116, andforwards it to the user device 104.

(6) The user device 104 receives the encoded instruction targeting theperipheral device 118, and sends it to the peripheral device 118. Theperipheral device 118 reads and carries out the task requested in theencoded instruction.

Although the encoded instruction in this example is an instructioninitiated from the user. The same flow of message(s) applies when theuser is responding to a previous request for information from theperipheral device. For example, if the peripheral device had previouslyrequested the user to provide a preferred energy saving mode for thetemperature control, the user can answer the request for information bytyping an instant “Most Power Saving” or “Balanced between Power andComfort” targeting the peripheral device in the chat interface.

FIG. 2L illustrate a communication scenario in which the peripheraldevice 118 initiates a message or request (e.g., “E01”, meaning “Error01=Light Sensor Blocked.”) targeting a user through the socialnetworking client application 108 executing on the user device 104. Inthis example, the flow of the message(s) is as follows:

(1) The peripheral device 118 generates an encoded message (e.g., “E01”)targeting the user.

(2) The user device 104 receives the encoded message, and forwards it tothe communication server 112.

(3) The communication server receives the encoded message from the userdevice and recognizes that “User” and “Peripheral” are the originatorand the target of the encoded message, respectively. The communicationserver also identifies the support server for the peripheral device, andforwards the encoded message to the support server for translation intoa human-readable instant message.

(4) The support server 116 receives the encoded message targeting theuser, and translates it into human-readable form (e.g., an instantmessage “The light sensor is blocked, please remove its cover”). Thesupport server 116 then sends the instant message targeting the user tothe communication server.

(5) The communication server receives the instant message targeting theuser, and forwards it to the user device.

(6) The user device receives the instant message targeting the user anddisplays the instant message to the user as an instant messageoriginated from the peripheral device and targeting the user.

Although the encoded message in this example is a request initiated fromthe peripheral device. The same flow of message(s) applies when theperipheral device is responding to a previous request for informationfrom the user. For example, if the user had previously requested theperipheral device to provide a weather forecast data for today, theperipheral device can answer the request for information by sending theanswers in an encoded message (e.g., “90RSW”, meaning “Rainy, highesttemperature=90 degrees, Southwest wind.”) targeting the user.

FIGS. 2M-2N illustrate that a user may communicate with a support serverindependent of a peripheral device supported by the support server. Thecommunication between the support server and the user can be carried outusing normal instant messaging capabilities provided on the socialnetworking platform. Suppose that the social network identity of thesupport server 116 is “Support”. A user can send an instant messagetargeting “Support”, and the support server can send an instant messagetargeting “User.”

As shown in FIG. 2M, the message flow is as follows:

(1) The instant message targeting the support server is typed in by theuser in a conversation interface of a chat session including “User” and“Support”.

(2) The user device sends the instant message targeting “Support” to thecommunication server.

(3) The communication server recognizes that the instant message targetsthe support server, and sends the instant message to the support server.The instant message is recorded in the conversation log of the chatsession as an instant message from User to Support.

As shown in FIG. 2N, the message flow is as follows:

(1) The instant message targeting the user is generated by the supportserver (e.g., either machine-generated or typed by an administrator ofthe support server). The support server sends the instant message to thecommunication server.

(2) The communication server recognizes that the instant message targetsthe user, and sends the instant message to the user device associatedwith the user.

(3) The user device displays the instant message to the user, and theinstant message is recorded in the conversation log of the chat sessionas an instant message from Support to User.

In various communication scenarios, the direct communication from thesupport server to the user can occur when a support staff wants toobtain some information from the user directly (e.g., “Is the surface ofthe temperature control wet?”), or give an instruction or informationdirectly to the user (e.g., “Press the red button twice while holdingthe blue button” or “No, that is not an error. The blinking blue lightmeans the unit is operating normally”).

In various communication scenarios, the direct communication from theuser to the support server can occur when the user wants to obtain someinformation from a staff of the support server or the support serverdirectly (e.g., “How do I turn the unit off without erasing my lastmeasurement”), or give an instruction or information directly to thesupport staff (e.g., “Can you reconfigure the unit remotely for me?” or“No, I never changed the filter before.”).

In various communication scenarios, the direct communications betweenthe user and the support server may be a one-on-one communication, orpart of a group chat session involving other user(s) and/or peripheraldevice(s).

FIG. 2O illustrates an exemplary communication scenario in which thesupport server 116 initiates an encoded instruction targeting theperipheral device 118 over the social networking platform. In thiscommunication scenarios, the user is engaged in a group conversationinvolving at least the support server (identified as “Support”), theuser him/herself (identified as “User”), and the peripheral device(identified as “Peripheral”). In such a communication scenario, inaddition to the encoded instruction targeting the peripheral device(e.g., “T01”, meaning “Run diagnostic test 1.”), the support server alsoprepares an instant message (e.g., “@Peripheral: Run diagnostic test1.”) based on the content of the encoded instruction, such that theinstant message can be sent to the user via the social networkingplatform and displayed in a conversation log of the current chatsession. The instant message will appear in the conversation log as aninstant message originated from the support server and targeting theperipheral device.

In some embodiments, the flow of the message(s) is as follows:

(1) In a group chat session involving “Support,” “User,” and“Peripheral”, the support server initiates an encoded instructiontargeting the peripheral device 118. The support server also generatesan instant message version of the encoded instruction for use by thecommunication server. The support server sends (1-1) the encodedinstruction and sends (1-2) the instant message, both targeting theperipheral device, to the communication server.

(2) The communication server receives the encoded instruction and theinstant message from the support server. The communication serverforwards (2-1) the encoded instruction to the user device as an encodedmessage targeting the peripheral device. The communication server alsoforwards (2-1) the instant message to the user device as ahuman-readable translation of the encoded message.

(3) The user device receives the encoded instruction and the instantmessage from the communication server. The user device sends (3-1) theencoded instruction to the peripheral device. The user device displays(3-2) the instant message to the user in a conversation log of thecurrent chat session as a message from “Support” to “Peripheral.”

In some embodiments, the support server may communicate with theperipheral device independent of the user's participation. In suchcases, no instant message needs to be prepared and sent to the user, andonly the encoded instruction is sent to the peripheral device via thecommunication server and the user device.

FIG. 2P illustrates an exemplary communication scenario in which theperipheral device 116 initiates an encoded message (e.g., “R01”, meaning“Diagnostic Test 01 has completed normally.”) targeting the supportserver 116 over the social networking platform. In this communicationscenarios, the user is engaged in a group conversation involving atleast the support server (identified as “Support”), the user him/herself(identified as “User”), and the peripheral device (identified as“Peripheral”). In such a communication scenario, when the support serverreceives the encoded instruction targeting itself, the support serveralso prepares an instant message based on the content of the encodedmessage, such that the instant message can be sent to the user via thesocial networking platform and displayed in a conversation log of thecurrent chat session. The instant message will appear in theconversation log as an instant message from “Peripheral” to “Support”.

In some embodiments, the flow of the message(s) is as follows:

(1) In a group chat session involving “Support,” “User,” and“Peripheral”, the peripheral initiates an encoded message targeting thesupport server 116. The peripheral device sends the encoded messagetargeting the support server to the user device first.

(2) The user device receives the encoded message from the peripheraldevice, and forwards it to the communication server.

(3) The communication server receives the encoded message targeting thesupport server from the user device. The communication server forwardsthe encoded message to the support server.

(4) The support server receives the encoded message and acts accordingly(e.g., updates records, prepare a next instruction, or ignores it). Thesupport server also prepares a human-readable instant message based onthe content of the encoded message. The human-readable instant messagewill be shown on the user device as a message originated from theperipheral device and targeting the support server”. The support servertransmits the instant message targeting the support server to thecommunication server.

(5) The communication server transmits the instant message targeting thesupport server to the user device.

(6) The user device receives the instant message targeting the supportserver and displays the instant message in a conversation log of thecurrent chat session. The instant message is displayed as a messageoriginating from “Peripheral” to “Support”.

In some embodiments, the support server may communicate with theperipheral device independent of the user's participation. In suchcases, no instant message needs to be prepared and sent to the user.

FIG. 2Q illustrates an exemplary communication scenario in which two ormore peripheral devices (e.g., peripheral devices 118-a and 118-b) areconnected to the user device 104. The peripheral device 118-a isregistered under the user's account as “Peripheral A”, and theperipheral device 118-b is registered under the user's account as“Peripheral B”. The two peripheral devices may be of the same type, ordifferent types. In this example, both peripheral devices have the samesupport server 116, e.g., since they have the same manufacturer or sharethe same or related native message formats. For example, peripheraldevice 118-a may be a climate control device, and the peripheral device118-b may be an energy monitoring device made by the same manufacturer.In this example, peripheral device 118-b sends an encoded instruction toaccess or control peripheral device 118-a through the social networkingplatform. In this example, at least the user (identified as “User”), theperipheral device 118-a (identified as “Peripheral A”), and theperipheral device 118-b (identified as “Peripheral B”) are involved in agroup chat session. The peripheral device 118-a is also referred to asperipheral device A, and the peripheral device 118-b is also referred toas peripheral device B in this example.

In this example scenario, the flow of message(s) is as follows:

(1) Peripheral device B generates an encoded message (e.g., “QR0111032,”meaning, “Energy use has reached a preset limit, initiate energy savingmode.”) targeting peripheral device A. Peripheral device B transmits theencoded message targeting peripheral device A to the user device 104.

(2) The user device receives the encoded message targeting peripheraldevice A, and forwards it to the communication server 112.

(3) The communication server 112 receives the encoded message targetingperipheral device A, and forwards it to the support server 116.

(4) The support server receives the encoded message targeting peripheraldevice A, and translates the received encoded message to another encodedmessage targeting peripheral device A according to the formatrequirements of peripheral device A. This translation is not necessaryif the source peripheral device (e.g., peripheral device B) and thetarget peripheral device (e.g., peripheral device A) use the samemessage format. The support server transmits (4-1) the translatedencoded message targeting peripheral device A to the communicationserver. The support server also translates the received encoded messagetargeting peripheral device A to a human-readable instant messagetargeting peripheral device A. The support server also transmits (4-2)the translated instant message targeting the peripheral device A to thecommunication server.

(5) The communication server receives the encoded message targetingperipheral device A from the support server, and forwards (5-1) it tothe user device. The communication server also receives the translatedinstant message targeting peripheral device A from the support server,and forwards (5-2) it to the user device.

(6) The user device receives the encoded message targeting peripheraldevice A, and sends (6-1) it to the peripheral device A. The peripheraldevice A then acts according to the received encoded message, e.g.,changes to an energy saving mode. The user device also displays theinstant message targeting the peripheral device A in the conversationlog of the current chat session, where the instant message is displayedas a message from “Peripheral B” to “Peripheral A”.

In some embodiments, the user may establish a control hierarchy of whichregistered peripheral device may control and/or access anotherregistered peripheral device. In some embodiments, by including two ormore registered peripheral devices in the same group chat session, theuser is deemed to have provided permission that allows each peripheraldevice to communicate with each of the other peripheral devices in thesame group chat. In some embodiments, a default control hierarchy isprovided by the support server of the different types of peripheraldevices that the support server supports.

FIG. 2R illustrates an exemplary communication scenario in which two ormore users (e.g., with social network identities “User A” and “User B”,respectively) are logged onto the same communication server throughtheir respective user devices (e.g., user device 104 a, also referred toas “user device A”; and user device 104 b, also referred to as “userdevice B”). A peripheral device 118-a (also referred to as peripheraldevice A in this example) is registered under user A's account as“Peripheral A”. In this example, at least “User A”, “Peripheral A”, and“User B” are involved in the same group chat session. In this examplescenario, User B initiates an instant message (e.g., “Turn off gameafter 20 minutes.”) to access and control peripheral device A (e.g., agaming console) over the social networking platform. The instant messageis translated into an encoded instruction for the peripheral device A bythe support server, and the encoded instruction arrives at theperipheral device through the communication server and the user deviceA. The communication server also sends the original instant message tothe user device as an instant message targeting the peripheral device A.The original instant message targeting the peripheral device A isdisplayed in the conversation log of the present chat session as amessage from “User B” to “Peripheral A”.

In this example scenario, the flow of message(s) is as follows:

(1) User B enters an instant message (e.g., “@Peripheral A: Exit gameafter 20 minutes.”) targeting peripheral device A in a conversationinterface of the group chat session displayed on user device B.

(2) The user device B transmits the instant message targeting peripheraldevice A to the communication server.

(3) The communication server receives the instant message targetingperipheral device A, and forwards it to the support server 116.

(4) The support server 116 receives the instant message targetingperipheral device A, and translates it to an encoded instructiontargeting peripheral device A. The support server transmits the encodedinstruction targeting peripheral device A to the communication server.

(5) The communication server receives the encoded message targetingperipheral device A, and forwards (5-1) it to the user device A. Thecommunication server also forwards (5-2) the original instant messagetargeting peripheral device A to the user device A.

(6) The user device A receives the encoded message targeting peripheraldevice A, and sends (6-1) it to the peripheral device A. The peripheraldevice A then acts according to the received encoded message, e.g.,exists the game after 20 minutes. The user device receives the originalinstant message targeting peripheral device A, and displays (6-2) theinstant message targeting the peripheral device A in the conversationlog of the current chat session, where the instant message is displayedas a message from “User B” to “Peripheral A”.

In some embodiments, the user may share access and/or control of asubset or all functions of a peripheral device registered under his/heraccount. This share of control and/or access can be on a per-chat basis,or on an on-going basis. In some embodiments, by including another userin the same group chat session involving a registered peripheral device,the user is deemed to have provided permission that allows that otheruser to communicate with the peripheral device. This can be applicablein a parental control context, where User B is the controlling party ofthe peripheral device A.

FIG. 2S illustrates an exemplary communication scenario in which two ormore users (e.g., with social network identities “User A” and “User B”,respectively) are logged onto the same communication server throughtheir respective user devices (e.g., user device 104 a, also referred toas “user device A”; and user device 104 b, also referred to as “userdevice B”). A peripheral device 118-a (also referred to as peripheraldevice A in this example) is registered under user A's account as“Peripheral A”. In this example, at least “User A”, “Peripheral A”, and“User B” are involved in the same group chat session. In this examplescenario, Peripheral device A initiates an encoded message (e.g.,“H120/L80/HR80/T97”, meaning “Blood Pressure 120/80, Heart Rate 80 perminute, and Temperature 97 degrees Fahrenheit.”) targeting user B in thegroup chat session. The encoded message is translated into ahuman-readable instant message targeting user B by the support server,and translated instant message arrives at the user devices A and Bthrough the communication server. The translated instant messagetargeting the user B is displayed in the conversation log of the presentchat session as a message from “Peripheral A” to “User B” (or a messagefrom “Peripheral A” to the conversation group as a whole).

In this example scenario, the flow of message(s) is as follows:

(1) Peripheral device A generates an encoded message (e.g.,“H120/L80/HR80/T97”, meaning “Blood Pressure 120/80, Heart Rate 80 perminute, and Temperature 97 degrees Fahrenheit.”) targeting user B (orthe whole group). Peripheral device A transmits the encoded message touser device A.

(2) User device A transmits the encoded message targeting user B (or thewhole group) to the communication server.

(3) The communication server receives the encoded message targeting userB (or the whole group), and forwards it to the support server 116.

(4) The support server 116 receives the encoded message targeting user B(or the whole group), and translates it to an instant message (e.g.,“User A's blood Pressure is 120/80, heart rate is 80 per minute, andbody temperature is 97 degrees Fahrenheit.”) targeting user B (or thewhole group). The support server transmits the translated instantmessage targeting user B (or the whole group) to the communicationserver.

(5) The communication server receives the instant message targeting userB (or the whole group), and forwards (5-1) it to the user device A. Thecommunication server also forwards (5-2) the instant message targetinguser B (or the whole group) to the user device B.

(6) The user device A receives the instant message targeting user B (orthe whole group), and displays (6-1) it to user A in the conversationlog of the current chat session, where the instant message is displayedas a message from “Peripheral A” to “User B” (or the whole group). Theuser device B receives the instant message targeting user B (or thewhole group), and displays (6-2) it to user B in the conversation log ofthe current chat session, where the instant message is displayed as amessage from “Peripheral A” to “User B” (or the whole group).

FIG. 2T illustrates an exemplary communication scenario in which two ormore users (e.g., with social network identities “User A” and “User B”,respectively) are logged onto the same communication server throughtheir respective user devices (e.g., user device 104 a, also referred toas “user device A”; and user device 104 b, also referred to as “userdevice B”). A peripheral device 118-a (also referred to as peripheraldevice A in this example) is registered under user A's account as“Peripheral A”. A peripheral device 118-b (also referred to asperipheral device B in this example) is registered under user B'saccount as “Peripheral B”. In this example, at least “User A”,“Peripheral A”, “User B”, and “Peripheral B” are involved in the samegroup chat session. In this example scenario, Peripheral device Binitiates an encoded message (e.g., “@Peripheral A: XT1”, meaning“@Peripheral A: Bedroom light is on; Turn off down-stair heater.”)targeting peripheral device A in the group chat session. The encodedmessage is translated into a human-readable instant message targetingPeripheral A by the support server, and the translated instant messagearrives at user device A and user device B through the communicationserver. The translated instant message targeting peripheral device A isdisplayed at both user device A and user device B, e.g., in theconversation log of the present chat session, as a message from“Peripheral B” to “Peripheral A”. The support server also translates theoriginal encoded message targeting peripheral device A to a translatedencoded message in a format that is acceptable to peripheral device A.The translated encoded message targeting peripheral device A arrives atthe peripheral device A through the communication server and the userdevice A.

In this example scenario, the flow of message(s) is as follows:

(1) Peripheral device B generates an encoded message (e.g., “@PeripheralA: XT1”, meaning “@Peripheral A: Bedroom light is on; Turn offdown-stair heater”) targeting peripheral device A. Peripheral device Btransmits the encoded message to user device B.

(2) User device B transmits the encoded message targeting peripheraldevice A to the communication server.

(3) The communication server receives the encoded message targetingPeripheral A, and forwards it to the support server 116.

(4) The support server 116 receives the encoded message targetingPeripheral A, and translates it to an encoded message targetingperipheral device A in a format acceptable to peripheral device A. Thesupport server 116 transmits (4-1) the translated encoded messagetargeting peripheral device A to the communication server. The supportserver also translates the original encoded message targeting peripheraldevice A to an instant message (e.g., “@Peripheral A: Bedroom light ison; Turn off down-stair heater”) targeting peripheral device A. Thesupport server transmits (4-2) the translated instant message targetingperipheral device A to the communication server.

(5) The communication server receives the instant message targetingperipheral device A and the translated encoded message targetingperipheral device A. The communication server forwards (5-1) thetranslated encoded message targeting peripheral device A to user deviceA. The communication server also forwards (5-2) the translated instantmessage targeting peripheral device A to user device B. Thecommunication server also forwards (5-3) the translated instant messagetargeting peripheral device A to the user device A.

(6) The user device A receives the translated encoded message targetingperipheral device A, and sends (6-1) it to the peripheral device A. Theuser device A also receives the translated instant message targetingperipheral device A, and displays (6-3) it to user A in the conversationlog of the current chat session, where the instant message is displayedas a message from “Peripheral B” to “Peripheral A”. The user device Balso receives the instant message targeting peripheral device A, anddisplays (6-2) it to user B in the conversation log of the current chatsession, where the instant message is displayed as a message from“Peripheral B” to “Peripheral A”.

Other variations of the communication configurations are possible, andmay be derived from the examples shown herein.

FIGS. 3A-3C are flow charts for an exemplary process 300 for setting upcontrol of a peripheral device (e.g., peripheral device 200) over asocial networking platform in accordance with some embodiments. Theexemplary process 300 is performed on a user device (e.g., user devices118 or 202) that to be connected to the peripheral device through asocial networking client application operating under a user's useraccount on the social networking platform. Various aspects of theprocess 300 are illustrated in FIGS. 1B and 2A-2T and accompanyingdescriptions.

In at least some embodiments, the method is performed by a user device(e.g., user device 104 or 202) with one or more processors and memory,or one or more components of the electronic device (e.g., socialnetworking client application 108 in FIG. 1B). In some embodiments, themethod is governed by instructions that are stored in a non-transitorycomputer readable storage medium and that are executed by one or moreprocessors of an electronic device (e.g., processor(s) of the userdevice 104).

In some embodiments, at the user device having one or more processorsand memory: the user device executes (302) a social networking clientapplication of the social networking platform. The social networkingclient application communicates with a communication server of thesocial networking platform to provide communication functions (e.g.,log-in, user registration, establishing contact relationships, creatingand joining groups, following others, publishing messages to followers,create one-to-one or group chat sessions, send and receive messages invarious formats, control and access registered peripheral devicesthrough chat messages or customized controls, etc.) available to usersof the social networking platform.

In some embodiments, the user device, through the social networkingclient application, receives (304) an input identifying a supportservice provider for a respective type of peripheral devices. Forexample, in some embodiments, receiving the input identifying thesupport service provider for the respective type of peripheral devicesfurther includes (306): scanning, via a barcode scanner, a barcodeassociated with the support service provider for the respective type ofperipheral devices. This is illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2D and accompanyingdescriptions. In some embodiments, the user optionally manually entersthe unique device identifier (e.g., a serial number for the device) ofthe peripheral device or its support service provider as a text input.

In some embodiments, the user device, in response to receiving the inputidentifying the support service provider for the respective type ofperipheral devices performs (308) the following operations: registeringa public social network identity of the support service provider as acontact of a user account currently associated with the user device; andsearching within a surrounding region of the user device to locate aperipheral device of the respective type of peripheral device. In someembodiments, when the input containing the information for identifyingthe support service provider of the peripheral device is provided to theuser device, the user device sends the information to the communicationserver, and the communication server identifies the support server forthe peripheral device, and establishes a social network identity for thesupport server. In some embodiments, the social network identity of theequipment may have already been established at the communication serverby other users at this time, and the communication server merelyassociates the present peripheral device to the social network identityof the support server. In some embodiments, a separate instance of thesupport server is spawn to serve the particular peripheral device, andthe separate instance is assigned a respective unique social networkidentity. The communication server registers the public social networkidentity of the support service provider as a contact of a user accountcurrently associated with the user device and the peripheral device. Thecommunication server provides the name of the social network contact forthe support service provider to the user device, which in turns displaysit to the user. This is illustrated in FIG. 2E (e.g., the social networkcontact 210 “Q-Support” is a social network identity assigned to thesupport server of the peripheral device Q-Band). In some embodiments,the user specifically requests to add the support server as a socialnetwork contact, and the user device forwards the request to thecommunication server. In some embodiments, the user device also sends(318) a request to register the user account as a contact of the supportservice provider on the social networking platform. For example, on theside of the support server providing the support service for theperipheral device, the contact list of the support server will alsoinclude the social network identities of the user and the peripheraldevice.

In some embodiments, the scan for the peripheral device is performedusing a special protocol that indicates to the user device that aperipheral device is configured to allow access and control over thesocial network platform. For example, the if the connection is to beestablished via a Bluetooth protocol, in the device discovery message,the peripheral device broadcast a predefined main service identifier(UUID) of the social networking client application, such that the socialnetworking client application executing on the user device can recognizethe peripheral device as a compatible device when it receives the devicediscovery message from the peripheral device. More details of theconnection protocol (Bluetooth™ or Bluetooth Low Energy™) and otherwired or wireless protocols are described later in the presentdisclosure.

In some embodiments, searching within a surrounding region of the userdevice to locate the peripheral device of the respective type ofperipheral device further includes (310): receiving a device discoverymessage from a respective peripheral device within the surroundingregion of the user device; determining whether a device discoverymessage includes a predetermined service identifier representing a mainservice provided by the social networking client application; and upon adetermination that the device discovery message includes thepredetermined service identifier, establishing a communication channelbetween the user device and the peripheral device. This is illustratedin FIG. 2F and accompanying descriptions. In some embodiments, thecommunication channel is a wireless communication channel followingpredetermined communication protocol associated with the socialnetworking client application (e.g., a classic Bluetooth or BLE protocolmodified according to the disclosure presented herein).

In some embodiments, the user device send (314) a request to establish asocial network identity for the peripheral device. For example, in someembodiments, once the user device has found the peripheral device thathas been bound to the user account active on the user device, the userdevice sends a request to the communication server to obtain arespective social networking identity for the peripheral device. In someembodiments, once the user device has successfully bound the peripheraldevice to the user account active on the user device, the user devicesends a request to the communication server to obtain a respectivesocial networking identity for the peripheral device. In someembodiments, the respective social networking identity for theperipheral device is the same as the unique instance of the supportserver that has been spawned for the peripheral device. In someembodiments, upon successful establishment of the social networkingidentity for the peripheral device, the user device presents theperipheral device as a social network contact of the user account in auser interface of the social networking client application. This isillustrated in FIG. 2E and accompanying descriptions.

In some embodiments, the user device sends (320) a request to registerthe user account as a respective member of an online communityassociated with the support service provider for the respective type ofperipheral device. In some embodiments, upon successful registration ofthe user account as the respective member of the online community, theuser device presents the online community as a social network group ofthe user account in a user interface of the social networking clientapplication. For example, in some embodiments, the support server of theperipheral device establishes an online community to include many usersthat own the type of peripheral devices the support server supports.Within this online community, the support server can broadcastnotifications, messages, tips, etc. to each user that has agreed to jointhe online community (e.g., chose to “follow” the public social networkidentity of the support server for the type of peripheral devices itsupports). In addition, in some embodiments, the members of the onlinecommunity can also post and receive messages from one another or thewhole online community. In some embodiments, the online communityoptionally includes the respective social networking identities of theregistered peripheral devices that the support server supports, suchthat the user optionally allows others to access and control their ownperipheral devices according to the embodiments described herein.

In some embodiments, the user device displays (324) an instant messagethat has originated from the a server of the support service provider ina conversation interface of a group chat session involving at least auser of the user account and the peripheral device. In some embodiments,the instant message memorializes an encoded instruction targeting theperipheral device. In some embodiments, the instant message appears as amessage originated from the public social network identity of thesupport server in the conversation interface, such as “An instructionfor resetting your B-Band has been sent to Q-Band” or “@Q-Band, Resetthe system”. In some embodiments, the instant message appears as amessage originated from a second peripheral device different from theperipheral device in the conversation interface. In some embodiments,the instant message memorializes an encoded message originated from theperipheral device. In some embodiments, the instant message appears inthe conversation interface as a message originated from the socialnetwork identity of the peripheral device, and targeting the publicsocial network identity of the support service provider. In someembodiments, the instant message appears in the conversation interfaceas a message originated from the social network identity of theperipheral device, and targeting the respective social network identityof the user account. In some embodiments, the instant message appears inthe conversation interface as a message originated from the socialnetwork identity of the peripheral device, and targeting a respectivesocial network identity of second peripheral device different from theperipheral device.

The features and steps of this exemplary process may be combined withthe features and steps described in other parts of the presentdisclosure, and these other features and steps are not repeated here forpurposes of brevity.

FIGS. 3D-3E are flow charts for an exemplary process 350 for setting upaccess and control of a peripheral device (e.g., peripheral device 200)in accordance with some embodiments. The exemplary process 350 isperformed on a user device (e.g., user devices 118 or 202) that to beconnected to the peripheral device through a social networking clientapplication operating under a user's user account on the socialnetworking platform. Various aspects of the process 300 are illustratedin FIGS. 1B and 2A-2T and accompanying descriptions. In the process 350,the input identifying the peripheral device (e.g., scanning a bar codeof the peripheral device) causes the user device to request a socialnetwork identity for the peripheral device, in dependent of the socialnetwork identity of a support server for the peripheral device. In someembodiments, both the social network identity of the peripheral deviceand the social network identity of the support server are automaticallyadded to the user's contact list. In some embodiments, the inputidentifying the peripheral device only causes the peripheral device tobe added as a contact of the user account, and the user can manually addthe support server as a contact. In some embodiments, the support serverdoes not provide a public social network identity that users can follow,instead, the support server may send communications to the user throughthe social network identity of the peripheral device that it supports.

In at least some embodiments, the method is performed by a user device(e.g., user device 104 or 202) with one or more processors and memory,or one or more components of the electronic device (e.g., socialnetworking client application 108 in FIG. 1B). In some embodiments, themethod is governed by instructions that are stored in a non-transitorycomputer readable storage medium and that are executed by one or moreprocessors of an electronic device (e.g., processor(s) of the userdevice 104).

In some embodiments, at a user device having one or more processors andmemory: the user device executes (352) a social networking clientapplication of the social networking platform on the user device. Thesocial networking client application communicates with a communicationserver of the social networking platform to provide communicationfunctions (e.g., log-in, user registration, establishing contactrelationships, creating and joining groups, following others, publishingmessages to followers, create one-to-one or group chat sessions, sendand receive messages in various formats, control and access registeredperipheral devices through chat messages or customized controls, etc.)available to users of the social networking platform.

In some embodiments, the user device, through the social networkingclient application, receives (354) an input identifying a peripheraldevice. In some embodiments, receiving the input identifying theperipheral device further includes (356) scanning, via a barcodescanner, a barcode associated with the peripheral device. This isillustrated in FIGS. 2A-2D and accompanying descriptions. In someembodiments, the user optionally manually enters the unique deviceidentifier (e.g., a serial number for the device) of the peripheraldevice as a text input.

In some embodiments, the user device, in response to receiving the inputidentifying the peripheral device, performs (358) the followingoperations: sending a request to establish a social networking identityfor the peripheral device; and upon successful establishment of thesocial networking identity for the peripheral device, presenting theperipheral device as a social network contact of the user account in auser interface of the social networking client application. This isillustrated in FIGS. 2A-2E. In some embodiments, the user device send(314) a request to establish a social network identity for theperipheral device.

In some embodiments, the user searches (360) within a surrounding regionof the user device to locate the registered peripheral device. In someembodiments, searching within a surrounding region of the user device tolocate the peripheral device further includes (362): receiving a devicediscovery message from a respective peripheral device within thesurrounding region of the user device; determining whether a devicediscovery message includes a predetermined service identifierrepresenting a main service provided by the social networking clientapplication; and upon a determination that the device discovery messageincludes the predetermined service identifier, establishing acommunication channel between the user device and the peripheral device.This is illustrated in FIG. 2F and accompanying descriptions. In someembodiments, the communication channel is (368) a wireless communicationchannel following a predetermined communication protocol associated withthe social networking client application (e.g., a classic Bluetooth orBLE protocol modified according to the disclosure presented herein).

In some embodiments, the user device sends (366) a request to registerthe user account as a contact of a support service provider of theperipheral device on the social networking platform. In someembodiments, the user device sends (368) a request to register the useraccount as a respective member of an online community associated with asupport service provider for the peripheral device. In some embodiments,upon successful registration of the user account as the respectivemember of the online community, the user device presents (370) theonline community as a social network group of the user account in a userinterface of the social networking client application. In someembodiments, the user device sends (372) a request to add a supportservice provider of the peripheral device as a contact of the useraccount. For example, in some embodiments, the support server of theperipheral device establishes an online community to include many usersthat own the type of peripheral devices the support server supports.Within this online community, the support server can broadcastnotifications, messages, tips, etc. to each user that has agreed to jointhe online community (e.g., chose to “follow” the public social networkidentity of the support server for the type of peripheral devices itsupports). In addition, in some embodiments, the members of the onlinecommunity can also post and receive messages from one another or thewhole online community. In some embodiments, the online communityoptionally includes the respective social networking identities of theregistered peripheral devices that the support server supports, suchthat the user optionally allows others to access and control their ownperipheral devices according to the embodiments described herein.

In some embodiments, the user device displays (374) an instant messagethat has originated from the a server of the support service provider ina conversation interface of a group chat session involving at least auser of the user account and the peripheral device. In some embodiments,the instant message memorializes (376) an encoded instruction targetingthe peripheral device. In some embodiments, the instant message appearsas a message originated from a public social network identity of thesupport service provider in the conversation interface. In someembodiments, the instant message appears as a message originated from asecond peripheral device different from the peripheral device in theconversation interface. In some embodiments, the instant messagememorializes (378) an encoded message originated from the peripheraldevice. In some embodiments, the instant message appears in theconversation interface as a message originated from the social networkidentity of the peripheral device, and targeting a public social networkidentity of the support service provider. In some embodiments, theinstant message appears in the conversation interface as a messageoriginated from the social network identity of the peripheral device,and targeting the respective social network identity of the useraccount. In some embodiments, the instant message appears in theconversation interface as a message originated from the social networkidentity of the peripheral device, and targeting a respective socialnetwork identity of second peripheral device different from theperipheral device.

The features and steps of this exemplary process may be combined withthe features and steps described in other parts of the presentdisclosure, and these other features and steps are not repeated here forpurposes of brevity.

FIGS. 4A-4D are flow charts for an exemplary process 400 for providingaccess and control of a peripheral device through a support serviceprovider (e.g., an support server of the support service provider)thereof over a social networking platform in accordance with someembodiments.

In at least some embodiments, the method is performed by a communicationserver (e.g., a communication server 112 b of the social networkingplatform in FIG. 1B) with one or more processors and memory, or one ormore components of the electronic device (e.g., a social networkingserver application module). In some embodiments, the method is governedby instructions that are stored in a non-transitory computer readablestorage medium and that are executed by one or more processors of anelectronic device (e.g., processor(s) of the communication server 112b).

As shown in FIG. 4A, in some embodiments, the communication server (402)receives a servicer registration request from the support serviceprovider, the servicer registration request specifying a type ofperipheral devices to be serviced by the support service provider. Inresponse to the servicer registration request, the communication serverestablishes (404) a public social network identity for the supportservice provider based on the servicer registration request. Forexample, the servicer registration can be performed before themanufacturer of the type of peripheral device releases the type ofperipheral device for public sale. The servicer registration request canbe part of the account registration process shown in FIG. 2I, in someembodiments.

The communication server receives (406) a first owner registrationrequest from a first user, the first owner registration requestspecifying a first peripheral device controlled by the first user. Forexample, this is illustrated in a device binding process shown in FIGS.2A-2H and 2J, and accompanying descriptions. In some embodiments, upon adetermination that the first peripheral device is of the type ofperipheral devices specified in the servicer registration request, thecommunication server establishes (408) a social network relationshipbetween the public social network identity of the support serviceprovider and a respective social network identity of the first user. Forexample, the communication server associates the social networkidentities of the support server for the type of peripheral device, theperipheral device, and the first user as social network contacts of oneanother, and notifies each regarding the association. In someembodiments, the communication server provides (410) first respectivecommunication messages targeting the first peripheral device and secondrespective communication messages originated from the first peripheraldevice as respective instant messages in a conversation interface of achat session between the respective social network identity of the firstuser and the public contact identity of the support service provider.For example, example communication scenarios are provided in FIGS. 2K-2Tand accompanying descriptions.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (412) aninstruction message from the support service provider, the instructionmessage identifying the first peripheral device as a target of theinstruction message. In response to receiving the instruction message,the communication server forwards the instruction message to the firstperipheral device via the first user device. The instruction message canbe a direct encoded instruction generated by the support server or atranslation of another instruction (e.g., an instruction from a user,another peripheral device) targeting the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, in response to receiving the instruction message,the communication server obtains (416) an instant message that has beengenerated based on content of the instruction message, and sends theinstant message to the first user device, wherein the first user devicepresents the instant message as a message from the public contactidentity of the support service provider to the first user in theconversation interface of the chat session between the first user andthe public contact identity of the support service provider. Forexample, the support server “Q-Support” can generated an encodedinstruction for the peripheral device “Q-Band”, the encoded instructionis forwarded to the peripheral device via the communication server andthe user device coupled to the peripheral device. In addition, thecommunication server obtains a human-readable instant message (e.g.,either by receiving it from the support server, or generate it locally)that corresponds to the content of the instruction from the supportserver.

In some embodiments, obtaining the instant message based on content ofthe instruction message further includes (418): receiving a naturallanguage message describing a purpose of the instruction message fromthe support service provider; and specifying the public social networkidentity of the support service provider as a sender of the naturallanguage message, and the first user as an intended recipient of thenatural language message.

In some embodiments, the communication serve receives (420) a replymessage for the instruction message via the first user device, the replymessage originated from the first peripheral device; and in response toreceiving the reply message, the communication server forwards (422) thereply message originated from the first peripheral device to the supportservice provider. For example, after the support server sends an encodedinstruction to the peripheral device, the peripheral device can providean encoded reply. For example, if the encoded instruction is for theperipheral device to generate some output data, the encoded reply caninclude the output data that has been generated by the peripheral deviceafter receiving the encoded instruction. In some embodiments, inresponse to forwarding the reply message to the support serviceprovider, the communication server receives (424) a second instantmessage from the support service provider, wherein the second instantmessage has been generated by the support service provider based oncontent of the reply message. For example, the support server receivingthe encoded message containing the requested output data translates itinto human-readable form for later presentation to the user. Thecommunication server forwards (426) the second instant message to thefirst user device, wherein the first user device presents the secondinstant message as a message from the public contact identity of thesupport service provider to the first user in the conversation interfaceof the chat session between the first user and the public contactidentity of the support service provider.

For example, the steps of 412-426 can occur in a communication scenarioin which the Q-Support sends an instruction to the Q-Band for outputtingthe user “Red207'”s health data for today, and the Q-Band responds bysending the health data to the Q-Support. Both the instruction and theresponse containing the health data are transmitted through the userdevice and the communication server in a format agreed upon by thesupport server Q-Support and the peripheral device Q-Band. The supportserver helps the communication server to prepare the translation of theencoded instruction and response, such that the communication betweenthe support server and the peripheral device can be presented in theconversation log as human-readable instant messages in a chat sessionbetween at least Q-Support and Q-Band.

In some embodiments, the communication server does not use the supportserver to provide the translation of the encoded messages andinstructions. Instead, for at least some simply and/or commoninstructions and messages, the communication server performs thetranslation locally. In some embodiments, in response to receiving thereply message: the communication server generates (428) a second instantmessage based on content of the reply message; and sends the secondinstant message to the first user device, wherein the first user devicepresents the second instant message as a message from the respectivesocial network identity of the support service provider to the firstuser in the conversation interface of the chat session between the firstuser and the public contact identity of the support service provider.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (430) a thirdinstant message from the support service provider, the third instantmessage identifying the first user as a target of the third instantmessage and requesting the third user to perform an operation on thefirst peripheral device or provide specific information regarding thefirst peripheral device. In response to receiving the third instantmessage, the communication server sends (432) the third instant messageto the first user via the first user device, where the third instantmessage is presented to the first user as a message from the publiccontact identity of the support service provider to the first user inthe conversation interface of the chat session between the first userand the public contact identity of the support service provider. Forexample, the Q-Support can send an instant message (“@Red207: Press andhold both buttons on the Q-Band until it beeps.”) to the user asking theuser to perform a physical operation on the Q-Band, and report back theresult of the operation.

In some embodiments, in response to sending the third instant message tothe first user, the communication server receives (434) a second replymessage from the first user via the first user device, the second replymessage targeting the public social network identity of the supportservice provider. For example, after the user Red207 has performed theoperation requested in the third instant message from Q-Support, theuser can send a reply instant message to Q-Support saying “I pressed thebuttons for 30 seconds, and Q-Band did not beep, but flashed bluelight.” In some embodiments, the communication server, in response toreceiving the second reply message, forwards (436) the second replymessage to the support service provider as a reply to the third instantmessage.

In some embodiments, the support service provider combines informationin the reply message and information in the second reply message toprepare a subsequent instruction to the first peripheral device or asubsequent message to the first user. For example, if the third instantmessage from Q-Support to Red207 is “Did you eat breakfast thismorning?” and the second reply message from Red207 to Q-Support is “No,I didn't”, the support server optionally generates a health report orfurther instructions based on the health monitoring data obtained fromQ-Band in the first reply message and the breakfast information providedin the user's second reply message.

In some embodiments, receiving the first owner registration request fromthe first user further includes (340): receiving transmission of ascanning result from the first user device, the scanning resultincluding a barcode associated with the support service provider for therespective type of peripheral devices. In some embodiments, thecommunication server receives (442) a request to establish anassociation between the first peripheral device and the first user; andestablishes (444) a communication channel between the support serviceprovider and the first peripheral device via the server of the socialnetwork platform and the first user device. This is illustrated in FIGS.2A-2H, for example.

Other features and aspects for the above exemplary process are providedin other parts of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 5A-5C are flow charts for an exemplary process 500 for providingaccess to one or more peripheral devices over a social networkingplatform. The peripheral devices are treated as social network contactsof human users on the social networking platform.

In some embodiments, the process 500 is performed by a server of thesocial network platform (e.g., the communication server 112 b in FIG.1B). In some embodiments, the communication server registers (502) afirst peripheral device coupled to a first user device as a respectivesocial network contact of a user account associated with the first userdevice. For example, this is illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2H and accompanyingdescriptions. The communication server provides (504) user access to thefirst peripheral device via a social networking client applicationexecuting at the first user device, wherein the social networking clientapplication recognizes the first peripheral device as the respectivesocial network contact of the user account associated with the firstuser device.

In some embodiments, providing access to the first peripheral devicecoupled to the first user device via a social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device further includes (506):receiving a first instant message request from the first user device,the first instant message request including a first instant message andidentifying the registered first peripheral device as a target of thefirst instant message; and in response to receiving the first instantmessage request from the first user device: obtaining an encodedinstruction targeting the registered first peripheral device based oncontent of the first instant message; and sending the encodedinstruction to the registered first peripheral device via the first userdevice. For example, a user (e.g., user “Red207”) of the first userdevice (e.g., a smart phone) wishes to control a first peripheral device(e.g., Bluetooth enabled bread maker) that has been registered with thecommunication server, and associated with the user's account as a socialnetwork contact of the user. The bread maker is connected to the userdevice and is displayed in the user's contact list as “Red's BreadMachine.” When the user wishes to start the bread maker at a later time(e.g., 4 pm), the user can start a chat session with “Red's BreadMachine” using the social network client application executing on theuser device, and sends a first instant message “Start kneading at 4 pm.”The communication server receives the user's instant message request,and obtains a corresponding encoded instruction (e.g., a binary commandsequence) that is accepted by the bread maker. The communication serveroptionally uses the support server of the bread maker to obtain theencoded instruction. The communication server then sends the encodedinstruction to the bread maker via the user device, and the bread makerstarts the appropriate kneading program as instructed by the instructionmessage (e.g., at 4 pm). This communication scenario is also shown inFIG. 2K and accompanying descriptions.

In some embodiment, providing access to the first peripheral devicecoupled to the first user device via a social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device further includes (508):receiving a first encoded message from the first user device, the firstencoded message being a message initiated by the first peripheraldevice, and forwarded to the server via the social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device; and in response to thereceiving the first encoded message from the first user device:obtaining a second instant message based on content of the first encodedmessage; and sending the second instant message to the first userdevice, wherein the social networking client application presents thesecond instant message as an instant message from the respective socialnetwork contact representing the peripheral device to the user accountassociated with the first user device. For example, continue with theabove example of the bread maker. Suppose that after the bread makerstarts the kneading program at 4 pm as instructed by the user, the breadmaker detects that the dough is too dry (e.g., if the user didn't putenough water in the bread maker) for a previously selected type ofbread, the bread maker generates a first encoded message (e.g.,“0014053434”) asking permission to modify the originally selected breadtype (e.g., from French bread to Russian bread). The first encodedmessage is sent from the bread maker to the communication server via theuser device, and the communication server obtains a translation of thefirst encoded message (e.g., “The dough is too dry, requestingpermission to change baking program from French Bread Mode to RussianBread Mode.”) based on the content of the encoded message. Thecommunication server sends the translation as a second instant messageto the user, and the conversation log shown in the social networkingapplication at the user device presents an instant message from “Red'sBread Machine” to “Red207” saying “The dough is too dry, requestingpermission to change baking program from French Bread Mode to RussianBread Mode.” The user receiving the second instant message has theoption to send a reply saying “No, proceed as programmed” or “OK, goahead” to the bread maker. This communication scenario is also shown inFIG. 2L and accompanying descriptions.

In some embodiments, providing access to the first peripheral device viaa social networking client application executing at the first userdevice further includes (510): establishing a one-to-one chat sessionbetween a respective user of the user account and the respective socialnetworking contact representing the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, providing access to the first peripheral device viaa social networking client application executing at the first userdevice further includes: establishing a group chat session between arespective user of the user account, the respective social networkingcontact representing the first peripheral device, and at least one othersocial network contact of the user account.

In some embodiments, providing access to the first peripheral device viaa social networking client application executing at the first userdevice further includes (512): during the group chat session, receivingpermission from the respective user of the user account to grant controlof the first peripheral device to the at least one other social networkcontact of the user account; and in response to receiving thepermission, enabling communication from the at least one other socialnetwork contact of the user account to a respective social networkidentity of the first peripheral device during the group chat session.For example, as shown in the communication scenario described withrespect to FIG. 2R, one user (e.g., User A) has granted permission to asocial network contact of his/hers to access and/or control a peripheraldevice registered under user A's account and coupled to user A's userdevice. For example, when user A (e.g., “Red207”) added user B (e.g.,“Reddog”) to a current chat session between user A and peripheral deviceA (e.g., “Red's Bread Machine”), and user A is deemed to have grantedaccess to the peripheral device A by user B. User B can now communicatewith peripheral device A in the same group chat session using instantmessages.

In some embodiments, enabling communication from the at least one othersocial network contact of the user account to a respective socialnetwork identity of the first peripheral device during the group chatsession further includes (516): receiving a second instant messagerequest from a second user device associated with the at least one othersocial network contact of the user account, the second instant messagerequest including a third instant message and identifying the registeredfirst peripheral device as a target recipient of the third instantmessage; and in response to receiving the second instant message requestfrom the second user device: obtaining a second encoded instruction tothe registered first peripheral device based on content of the thirdinstant message; and sending the second encoded instruction and thethird instant message to the first user device, wherein the socialnetworking client application displays the third instant message at thefirst user device and forwards the second encoded instruction to theregistered first peripheral device. For example, when user A “Red207”wishes to ask for user B “Reddog's” assistance in deciding whether tochange the previously selected bread type, user A adds user B into thecurrent chat session and establishes a group chat session involving“Red207”, “Red's Bread Machine” and “Reddog.” User “Red207” canoptionally sends an instant message to user “Reddog” in the group chatsession saying “The bread machine says the dough is too try, should Iswitch the baking program from French to Russian?” User “Reddog” being amore experience baker can instruct the bread machine to maintain thecurrent bread type, but lower the baking temperature by 10 degrees whileextending baking time by 10 minutes. In this example, the user “Reddog”serves as the social contact of the first user (e.g., “Red207”) sendsthe second instant message request from a second user device (e.g., user“Reddog's” tablet device). The second instant message request includesthe third instant message, e.g., “@Red's Bread Machine: Don't switchbread type. Instead, lower baking temperature by 10 degrees, and extendbaking time by 10 minutes.” The communication server obtains the encodedinstruction based on the content of the third instant message, and sendsthe encoded instruction to the bread maker via the first user device.This communication scenario is also illustrated in FIG. 2R andaccompanying descriptions.

In some embodiments, providing access to the first peripheral device viaa social networking client application executing at the first userdevice further includes (518): receiving a second encoded message fromthe first user device, the second encoded message being a messageinitiated by the first peripheral device coupled to the first userdevice, and sent to the server via the social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device; and in response to thereceiving the second encoded message from the first user device:obtaining a fourth instant message based on content of the secondencoded message; and sending the fourth instant message to the firstuser device and a second user device associated with the at least oneother social network contact of the user account, wherein the fourthinstant message is presented at the first user device and the seconduser device as a message received from the respective social networkcontact representing the first peripheral device. Following the exampleconcerning the bread maker above. Suppose that the bread maker “Red'sBread Machine” receives the encoded instruction regarding loweringbaking temperature and extending baking time, and determines that it isfeasible. The break maker generates a second encoded message (e.g., “OK,program modification initiated, T=T+10, t=t+10.”). The second encodedmessage targets the whole group including both user A and user B. Thesecond encoded message is sent to the communication server, and thecommunication server obtains a fourth instant message targeting bothuser A and user B, based on the content of the second encoded message.For example, the fourth instant message may be “OK, proceeding to modifybaking program as instructed by Reddog.” The fourth instant message isdisplayed in the conversation log on both users' user devices as a replyfrom the bread maker “Red's Bread Machine.” This communication scenariois illustrated in FIG. 2S and accompanying descriptions.

Other features and aspects for the above exemplary process are providedin other parts of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 6A-6D are flow charts for an exemplary process 600 for providingcontrol and access to a peripheral device by treating the peripheraldevice as a social network contact in a social network in accordancewith some embodiments. In some embodiments, the control and access tothe peripheral device is accomplished through a social network identityof a support server for the peripheral device. In some embodiments, theprocess is performed by a server (e.g., communication server 112 b inFIG. 1B) of the social networking platform.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (602) a servicerregistration request from the support service provider, the servicerregistration request specifying a type of peripheral devices to beserviced by the support service provider. For example, a manufacturer ofthe bread maker can have a customer support department personnelregister a servicer's account with the communication server. Theservicer's account has its public social network identity that canbecome social network contacts of many users, as long as the usersagrees to subscribed to the message or publication by the customersupport personnel under the public social network identity. Thecommunication server establishes (604) a public social network identityfor the support service provider based on the servicer registrationrequest. For example, the public social network identity may beassociated with one or more types of peripheral devices for which thecustomer support department provides support services.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (606) a firstowner registration request from a first user, the first ownerregistration request specifying a first peripheral device controlled bythe first user. Upon a determination that the first peripheral device isof the type of peripheral devices specified in the servicer registrationrequest: the communication server creates (608) a respective socialnetwork identity for the first peripheral device on the social networkplatform; and establishes a social network relationship between thepublic social network identity of the support service provider, thefirst user, and the respective social network identity of the firstperipheral device.

In some embodiments, the communication server establishes (610) arespective group chat session between the public social network identityof the support service provider, the first user, and the respectivesocial network identity of the first peripheral device. In someembodiments, the communication server automatically establishes a groupconversation for the support service provider, the user, and theperipheral device based on the fact that the user and the support serverare both linked to the peripheral device, the former being a currentowner of the peripheral device, and the latter being a support serviceprovider of the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, while the first user is logged onto the socialnetwork platform using a first user device, the communication serverreceives (612) a log-on request from the first peripheral device via thefirst user device; and in response to receiving the log-on request fromthe first peripheral device via the first user device, the communicationsever notifies (614) the support service provider regarding availabilityof the first peripheral device. For example, after the first peripheraldevice has been registered by the first user, as soon as the firstperipheral device establishes a connection with the first user device ofthe first user through the operation of the social network clientapplication executing on the first user device, the first user devicereports the active online status of the first peripheral device to thecommunication server. The communication server then updates the supportserver of the active online status of the first peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (616) aninstruction message from the support service provider, the instructionmessage identifying the first peripheral device as a target of theinstruction message. In response to receiving the instruction message,the communication server forwards (618) the instruction message to thefirst peripheral device via the first user device. In some embodiments,in response to receiving the instruction message targeting the firstperipheral device: the communication server obtains (620) an instantmessage that has been generated based on content of the instructionmessage; and sends the instant message to the first user device, whereinthe first user device presents the instant message as a message from thepublic contact identity of the support service provider to therespective social network identity of the first peripheral device in agroup conversation interface of the social networking platform. This isillustrated in the communication configuration of FIG. 2O. For example,if the support service provider of the bread maker wishes to collectbread making usage frequency data from the bread maker, the supportserver sends an encoded instruction to the bread maker “Red's BreadMachine” to submit the requested usage data via the communication serverand the first user device. The communication server also obtains (e.g.,from the support server) an instant message (e.g., “@Red's BreadMachine: Please send me the usage data for last month.”) reflecting thecontent and/or purpose of the encoded instruction, and sends it to thefirst user device for display to the user in the conversation log of thegroup chat session between the social network identities of the supportserver, the first user, and the bread maker.

In some embodiments, obtaining the instant message further includes(622): obtaining a natural language message describing a purpose of theinstruction message from the support service provider; and specifyingthe public contact identity of the support service provider as a senderof the natural language message, and the respective social networkidentity of the first peripheral device as a target recipient of thenatural language message.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (624) a firstreply message for the instruction message from the first peripheraldevice via the first user device. In response to receiving the firstreply message, the communication server forwards (626) the first replymessage to the support service provider. For example, when the breadmaker submits the usage data in an encoded message to the supportserver, the encoded message first arrives at the first user device andis transmitted by the first user device to the communication server, andthe communication server then forwards it to the support server.

In some embodiments, in response to receiving the first reply message:the communication server obtains (628) a second instant message that hasbeen generated based on content of the first reply message; and sendsthe second instant message to the first user device, wherein the firstuser device presents the second instant message as a message from therespective social network identity of the first peripheral device to thepublic social network identity of the support service provider in thegroup conversation interface of the social networking platform. Forexample, after the support server receives the encoded bread maker usagedata in the first reply message, the support server translates theencoded usage data into human-readable form (e.g., a list or table) andincludes it in a second instant message. The support server provides thesecond instant message to the communication server for the communicationserver to send to the first user device. The first user device displaysthe second instant message as a reply from the bread maker “Red's BreadMachine” to the public social network identity of the support server.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (630) a thirdinstant message from the support service provider, the third instantmessage identifying the first user as a target of the third instantmessage and requesting the third user to perform an operation on thefirst peripheral device or provide specific information regarding thefirst peripheral device. In response to receiving the third instantmessage, the communication server sends (632) the third instant messageto the first user via the first user device, where the third instantmessage is presented to the first user as a message from the publiccontact identity of the support service provider to the first user inthe group conversation interface of the social networking platform. Insome embodiments, in response to sending the third instant message tothe first user, the communication server receives (634) a second replymessage from the first user via the first user device; and in responseto receiving the second reply message, the communication server forwards(636) the second reply message to the support service provider as areply to the third instant message. For example, continue with theexample of the bread maker above. The support server can generate thethird instant message asking the first user to provide some informationon the taste preference or usage experience from the first userregarding the bread maker. The support server can state in the thirdinstant message “Do you prefer your bread to be softer than those thathave been made by Red's Bread Machine?” The support server sends thethird instant message to the communication server, for the communicationserver to forward to the user “Red207.” After the third instant messageis sent to the user “Red207” and displayed at the first user device, theuser can provide a reply to the question asked by the support server.For example, the user can provide the second reply message as an instantmessage targeting the support server, where the reply message states “Iprefer softer breads.” The second reply message is sent to thecommunication server and the communication server forwards the secondreply message to the support server.

In some embodiments, the support service provider combines (638)information in the first reply message (e.g., the machine usage datareceived from the bread maker “Red's Bread Machine”) and information inthe second reply message (e.g., the taste and texture preferenceprovided by the user) to prepare a subsequent instruction (e.g., anencoded instruction for adjusting a baseline of the bread makingprogram) to the first peripheral device and/or a subsequent message(e.g., an instant message advising the user to put slight more waterinto the bread machine in the future) to the first user. In someembodiments, an instant message memorializing the encoded instructionand/or the instant message to the first user are entered into theconversation log of the current group chat session.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (640) a pluralityof owner registration requests from a plurality of users, each of theplurality of owner registration requests specifying a respectiveperipheral device of the type of peripheral devices specified in theservicer registration request. In response to the plurality of ownerregistration requests, the communication server creates (642) arespective social network identity for each of the plurality ofperipheral devices specified in the plurality of owner registrationrequests. In some embodiments, the communication server creates a socialnetwork community including the public social network identity of thesupport service provider, the plurality of users, and the respectivesocial network identities of the plurality of peripheral devices. Forexample, the communication server can create an online community for allusers who have registered the same type of bread makers, and allow themto have a social network group to communicate with one another, alongwith their respective devices in the social network group. In someembodiments, the communication server receives (646) a broadcast messagefrom the support service provider; and in response to receiving thebroadcast message, the communication server sends the broadcast messageto each of the plurality of peripheral devices currently logged onto theserver via a respective user device. For example, the support server ofthe bread machines can send a broadcast message (e.g., an encodedmessage for stopping a feature that has just been discovered to beunsafe) to all registered bread machine in the online community. All thebread machines receiving the broadcast message can act according to theinstruction in the broadcast message.

Other features and aspects for the above exemplary process are providedin other parts of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 7A-7C are flow charts for an exemplary process 700 for providingcontrol and access between peripheral devices over a social networkplatform in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, theprocess is performed by a communication server of the social networkplatform.

In some embodiments, the communication server registers (702) a firstperipheral device and a second peripheral device coupled to a first userdevice as respective social network contacts of a user accountassociated with the first user device. For example, the user Red207 canregister a climate control device and a lighting control device in herapartment with the communication server. Suppose that the communicationserver assigns respective social network identities “Red's ClimateMaster” and “Red's Lighting Master” to the client control device and thelighting control device. Both devices are coupled to the user's userdevice (e.g., a smart phone) via a social network client applicationexecuting on the user device. In some embodiments, the communicationserver enables (704) communication between the first peripheral device(e.g., the lighting control device) and the second peripheral device(e.g., the climate control device) via the social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device.

In some embodiments, in a group chat interface of the social networkingclient application, the communication server presents (708) a groupconversation between a user of the user account and the respectivesocial network contacts representing the first and the second peripheraldevices, wherein the group conversation includes one or more instantmessages corresponding to content of the communication between the firstperipheral device and the second peripheral device. For example, thecommunication server can provide a group chat session in which the user“Red207” and the two peripheral devices “Red's Climate Master” and“Red's Lighting Master” can exchange communication messages with oneanother. In the conversation log of the group chat, the communicationmessages are all shown as instant messages readable by a human user,regardless of whether the original messages exchanged between theparties are encoded messages or regular instant messages.

In some embodiments, enabling communication between the first peripheraldevice and the second peripheral device via a social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device further includes (706):receiving a first message request from the first peripheral device viathe first user device; based on the first message request, identifyingthe second peripheral device as a respective message target among one ormore message targets of the first message request; obtaining a firstencoded message for the second peripheral device based on content of thefirst message request; and sending the first encoded message to thesecond peripheral device via the first user device. For example, if thelighting control device detects that the lights in the down stair livingroom has been turned off, and the lights upstairs bedroom has beenturned on, the lighting control device optionally sends an a firstmessage request to the communication server via the user device. Thefirst message request including at least a first encoded messagetargeting the climate control device. The first encoded message is aninstruction for the climate control device to turn off the airconditioning downstairs, and turn on the air conditioning upstairs. Insome embodiments, the original message targeting the climate controldevice may be of a different format, and may be converted into a formatacceptable by the climate control device before the message is send tothe client control device via the user device.

In some embodiments, the communication server obtains (710) a firstinstant message corresponding to content of the first encoded messagefor the second peripheral device, and sends (712) the first instantmessage to the first user device, wherein the first instant message ispresented in the group chat interface as an instant message from therespective social network contact representing the first peripheraldevice to the respective social network representing the secondperipheral device. For example, the first instant message can be amessage saying “@Red's Climate Master, Red207 has moved upstairs, pleaseadjust the air conditioning accordingly.” Note that the first instantmessage is meant for the user to understand what has happened betweenthe devices, and thus the first instant message need not be a verbatimtranslation of the encoded message transmitted between the twoperipheral devices. Other customized and more natural statementsconveying the meaning and content of the encoded message may be used bythe communication server.

In some embodiments, based on the first message request, thecommunication server identifies (714) a user of the user account as anadditional message target among the one or more message targets of thefirst message request. For example, the lighting control deviceoptionally generates a first message request that includes multipleportions, and each portion representing a respective message with arespective target. In addition to the encoded instruction targeting theclimate control device, the first message request optionally includesanother message targeting the user Red207. In some embodiments, thecommunication server generates (716) a second instant message for theuser of the user account based on content of the first message request,and sends (718) the second instant message to the first user device,wherein the second instant message is presented in the group chatinterface as an instant message from the respective social networkcontact representing the first peripheral device to the user of the useraccount. For example, the second instant message may be a message fromthe lighting control device saying “Red207, the light over the stove isstill on, do you want to turn it off?” This second instant message isgenerated based on the portion of the first message request thatincludes an encoded message targeting the user. For example, the portionof the first message request that includes the encoded message targetingthe user may be a message with an exception code representing anunattended light (“E01”) and a location code of the unattended light(e.g. “K5”).

In some embodiments, in response to sending the first encoded message(e.g., the encoded message for changing the air conditioning upstairsand downstairs) to the second peripheral device via the first userdevice, the communication server receives (720) a first encoded response(e.g., “+1”, meaning “OK”) from the second peripheral device via thefirst user device. In response to sending the second instant message(e.g., “Red207, the light over the stove is still on, do you want toturn it off?”) to the first user device, the communication serverreceives (722) a first instant message response (e.g., “@Red's LightingMaster: Turn that light off.”) from the user of the user account via thefirst user device.

In some embodiments, the communication server obtains (724) a secondencoded message for the first peripheral device, the second encodedmessage being generated based on information in the first encodedresponse from the second peripheral device and information in the firstinstant message response from the user of the user account. Thecommunication server sends (726) the second encoded message to the firstperipheral device via the first user device. For example, thecommunication server obtains a second encoded message for the lightingcontrol device, where the second encoded instruction can an encodedinstruction for the lighting control device to enter a suspended modeafter turning off the downstairs light over the oven.

In some embodiments, the communication server registers (728) a thirdperipheral device coupled to a second user device as respective socialnetwork contact of a user account associated with the second userdevice; and enables (730) communication between the first peripheraldevice and the third peripheral device via the social networking clientapplication executing at the first user device and a social networkingclient application executing at the second user device. For example, inaddition to the climate control device and the lighting control deviceconnected to Red207's user device, a third peripheral device (e.g., asecurity monitoring device) controlled by another user “Reddog” throughReddog's tablet device can be added to the group chat session, andcommunicate with the climate control device and/or the lighting controldevice.

In some embodiments, based on the first message request, thecommunication server identifies (732) the third peripheral device asanother additional message target among the one or more message targetsof the first message request. For example, the first message request caninclude an additional portion that includes an encoded message targetingthe security monitoring device coupled to the second user deviceoperated by the first user's social network contact “Reddog.” Thecommunication server obtains (734) a third encoded message (e.g.,“EXESFG001”, meaning “Turn on security monitoring of all gates.”) forthe third peripheral device (e.g., the security monitoring system),where the third encoded message has been generated based on content ofthe first message request. The communication server sends (736) thethird encoded message to the third peripheral device via the second userdevice (e.g., Reddog's tablet device).

In some embodiments, in response to sending the third encoded message tothe third peripheral device via the second user device, thecommunication server receives (738) a second encoded response from thethird peripheral device via the second user device. For example, thesecurity monitoring device, after receiving the encoded instruction toturn on security monitoring for all gates, sends an acknowledgement ofthe instruction to the lighting control device. In some embodiments, thecommunication server obtains (740) a fourth encoded message for thefirst peripheral device, the fourth encoded message has been generatedbased on content of the second encoded response. The communicationserver sends (742) the fourth encoded response for the first peripheraldevice to the first peripheral device via the first user device. Forexample, since the native message formats of the lighting control deviceand the security monitoring device may be different, the second encodedresponse received from the third peripheral device needs to be convertedto a format that is accepted by the first peripheral device. Thus, thecommunication server obtains the fourth encoded message for the firstperipheral device, where the fourth encoded message is a translation ofthe second encoded response into the message format of the firstperipheral device.

In some embodiments, in response to sending the third encoded message tothe third peripheral device via the second user device, thecommunication server receives (744) a second encoded response from thethird peripheral device via the second user device; and thecommunication server includes (746) the second encoded response in thesecond encoded message before sending the second encoded message to thefirst peripheral device via the first user device. For example, thesecond encoded message is a message for the lighting control device toenter a suspended mode after turning off the downstairs light over theoven. The second encoded response is a response from the securitymonitoring system indicating that all gates have been secured, thus, thecombined message sent to the light control device is simply to go intothe sleep mode after turning off the oven light, since all other tasks(e.g., change air conditioning and activate security monitoring of thegates) have been taken care of by the climate control device and thesecurity monitoring device, respectively.

Other features and aspects for the above exemplary process are providedin other parts of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating timing requirements for anexemplary device discovery process and a subsequent communicationprocess implemented by a peripheral device and a user device inaccordance with some embodiments.

As described above, the access and control of a peripheral device via asocial network platform requires the peripheral device to be connectedto a user device through a social network client application executingon the device. The user device communicates with a communication serverof the social network platform through the social network clientapplication as well. Between the user device and the peripheral device,a connection (e.g., a WiFi connection, a USB connection, a Bluetoothconnection, a Bluetooth Low Energy connection, an ultrasound connection,a Thunderbolt connection, etc.) is used to transfer data (e.g., encodedinstructions targeting the peripheral device, and encoded responsesoriginated from the peripheral device) to and from the peripheraldevice.

Bluetooth and Bluetooth Low Energy protocols are easy to use andimplement for connecting the peripheral device and the user device. Thegeneral Bluetooth design guidelines (e.g., Bluetooth™ 4.0 designguideline, Apple™'s Bluetooth Design Guideline for use with Apple™products) are not tailored to the context of controlling the peripheraldevice via a social networking platform. FIG. 8 illustrate somerefinement of the general Bluetooth device discovery process that aimsto improve user experience.

As shown in FIG. 8, a Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device serves as aSlave that advertises (e.g., by broadcasting device discovery messages)and waits for connection requests. The user device serves as a Masterwhich scans for other devices and sends connection requests to adiscovered peripheral device.

As shown in FIG. 8, to improve the connection efficiency, thebroadcasting period of the peripheral device is divided into an initialbroadcasting period (e.g., the first 30 seconds of the broadcastingperiod), and a subsequent broadcasting period (e.g., the portion of thebroadcasting period after the initial broadcasting period). During theinitial broadcasting period, the peripheral device broadcasts a devicediscovery message repeatedly with a respective interval between adjacentdevice discovery messages (e.g., between the starting edges of theadjacent device discovery message broadcast time slots) no more than 500ms. After the initial broadcasting period, if no connection request hasbeen received, the peripheral device slows down the broadcast, and thedevice discovery messages are repeatedly with a respective intervalbetween adjacent device discovery messages of no more than 3 s. In someembodiments, the peripheral device starts the broadcasting period whenit is powered on. In some embodiments, the user can provide a signal tothe peripheral device to start the broadcasting period.

During the broadcasting period, the user device scans for the devicediscovery messages, and when the user device detects a device discoverymessage from the peripheral device, the user device determines if theperipheral device is a device that has implemented the methods describedherein. For example, in some embodiments, the peripheral device includesa predetermined identifier designated for a social networking serviceassociated with a social networking client application executing on theuser device. For example, this predetermined identifier can be releasedto the manufacturers of the peripheral devices beforehand, such that themanufacturers preset their peripheral devices to broadcast thisidentifier as a UUID in the device discovery messages. This identifierallows the user device to quickly determine if a peripheral device thatcan communicate with the social networking client application toimplements the methods described herein is present.

FIG. 8 also shows that, in some embodiments, the timing gap between twoconsecutive connection events after the connection has been establishedis preset to 30 ms. This allows the transmission protocol to comply withindustry standards, and at the same time achieve relatively hightransmission speed. In some embodiments, the timeout window for aconnection event is 2 s, which is relatively short compared to otherstandards and ensures a faster discovery of delayed connection.

FIGS. 9A-9B are simplified flow charts for an exemplary data transferprocess implemented by a peripheral device and a user device inaccordance with some embodiments.

When transferring data between devices, the format of the data packetstransmitted between the social network client application (user device)and the communication server of the social network platform followpredetermined format protocols, such that the communication server canidentify the nature of the data packets, and its original source andfinal destination, and the payload of the data packet that is to beforwarded to the destination party. Since the payload of the data packetlikely contain variable length data (e.g., instant messages, images,speech, encoded instructions from different types of peripheral devices,etc.), depending on the connection type used between the user device andthe peripheral device, and depending on the connection type used betweenthe user device and the communication server, a single data packet maybe divided and sent in multiple chunks over the connection.

Using the connection between the user device and the peripheral deviceas an example, if the connection is a classic Bluetooth connection, thedata transmission can be done in a data stream with no fixed length.However, if the connection is a Bluetooth Low Energy connection, thedata length has a maximum limit (e.g., 20 Byte) for each data transferoperation (e.g., read, write, indicate, or notify operation). Therefore,to transmit a variable length data packet, the data packet needs to bedivided into chunks and stored as or written to the value for an exposedcharacteristic in sequence, and the user device and the peripheraldevice needs to interpret each detected value as part of a continuousstream of data and reassembles the data packet after the values for allchunks have been obtained. In other words, a process for simulating acontinuous data stream needs to be performed to transfer variable lengthdata over a Bluetooth Low Energy connection (or other types ofconnection that only allow short bursts of data transfer operations).

In some embodiments, when a classic Bluetooth connection is used, apredetermined UUID (e.g., 0xFEC6) for a predetermined rfcomm service(e.g., designating the service associated with the social network clientapplication) is exposed by the peripheral device. The user device scansfor this predetermined UUID when performing the device discoveryprocess, e.g., as the process shown in FIG. 2F and accompanydescriptions. Once the connection is established, the data istransmitted over the Bluetooth connection in a data stream. Each datapacket includes one of a Request, a Response to the Request, or a PushRequest. A push request data packet includes a Push Request, the PushRequest does not require a response. A Push Request is used for sendingan instruction or message from a support server or communication server,and targeting a user device or peripheral device. A Request is used forsending a request or message from a user device or peripheral device,and targeting a support server or the communication server. Each Requestrequires a corresponding Response. The Request and its correspondingResponse are matched by sharing the same sequence number. Each datapacket includes a single Request, Response, or Push Request, and eachdata packet is sent over the connection as a respective data stream.

In some embodiments, each data packet includes a fixed length headerportion and a variable length body portion. For example, in someembodiments, the header portion can include different fixed fields,e.g., respective fields for entering a magic number representing thesocial networking service (e.g., bMagicNumber=0xFE), a protocol versionnumber (e.g., bVer=1); a packet total length (e.g., header+body=45Bytes), a command ID (e.g., a command ID for an authenticationrequest=3, or a command ID for sending data to the support server=5,etc.), a packet sequence number (e.g., sequence number for aRequest=non-zero number, sequence number for a Push Request=0).

The following is an example data packet format:

//DataPacket//    //Fixed Length Header//    Struct BpFixHead    {      unsigned char bMagicNumber;       unsigned char bVer;      unsigned short nLength;       unsigned short nCmdId;      unsigned short shortnSeq;    }; //Variable Length Body//   Protoalbuf  //data in binary//

Each data packet includes a Request, Response, or Push Request, and eachRequest, Response, and Push Request includes a respective command IDthat corresponds to a respective function (e.g., authentication, getcontact list, start chat session, set up a group chat session, send amessage, send an image, playback a voice message etc.) provided by thesocial network application.

When the data packet is transmitted over a connection that supportsvariable length data packet, the data packet length field allows therecipient to determine when the end of a whole data packet has beenreached. The other fields of the header information allows the recipientto know how to process the data contained with the body of the datapacket, e.g., to forward it further, to unpack and execute a commandcontained within, to executed a requested function using the parameterscontained within, or to translate or convert the data within to adifferent format, etc.

If the connection is a Bluetooth Low Energy connection, the data aresent through exposed characteristics which means only small portions ofdata can be sent through each data transfer operation. In order totransmit variable length data packets that are larger than the data sizelimit set by the characteristics, a method for simulating a continuousdata stream using the data transfer operation(s) through exposedcharacteristics is needed.

FIG. 9A shows the simplified flow of operations performed by aperipheral device and a user device when a data packet (e.g., a Request)is sent from the peripheral device to the user device. FIG. 9B shows thesimplified flow of operations performed by the peripheral device and theuser device when a data packet (e.g., a Push Request or a Response) issent from the user device to the peripheral device. Since the BluetoothLow Energy connection allows data transmission and receipt to be done ina duplex manner, the process shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B may be performedin a multiplex fashion without interference with one another.

In some embodiments, when a peripheral device is connected to a userdevice via a Bluetooth Low Energy connection, the peripheral deviceexposes the preset UUID (e.g., 0xFEC6) for the service of the socialnetworking client application, and two preset characteristics (e.g.,UUID:0xFEC7 and UUID:xFEC8). One characteristic (e.g., 0xFEC7) is foraccepting data from the user device (i.e., the characteristic forreading data), it has the “write” property enabled. The othercharacteristic (e.g., 0xFEC8) is for sending data to the user device(i.e., the characteristic for writing data), and it has the “indicate”property enabled. The user device detects and subscribes to these twoexposed characteristics when establishing the connection to theperipheral device. This is illustrated as the first steps in FIGS. 9Aand 9B, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 9A, the process for sending data from the peripheraldevice to the user device includes the following:

(1) The peripheral device obtains the data packet (e.g., a Request) tobe sent to another party (e.g., a user, the communication server, thesupport server, or another peripheral device) via the user device. Thedata packet follows the format described above.

(2) The peripheral determines the characteristic (e.g., thecharacteristic 0xFEC8 for writing data) that has been exposed to theuser device for sending data to the user device.

(3) The peripheral device obtains the size limit of the value containedin exposed characteristic for writing and divides the data packets intoone or more frames plus any remainder. The maximum size limit of thevalue contained in the characteristic is referred to as a frame size.Different characteristics have different maximum size limit for itsvalue. Typically, the size limit for a frame is 20 bytes, while a datapacket can be hundreds and thousands of bytes in size.

(4) The peripheral device divides the data packet into a sequence offrames according to the size limit of the exposed characteristic forwriting. For example, if a health monitoring wrist band needs to send 1kilobytes of data to the user device, the data packet has a size of 1024bytes, the size limit of the value for the characteristic for writing is20 bytes, then the data packet is divided into a sequence of 51 frames,with a 20 byte frame size, plus a 4 byte remainder at the end.

(4) The peripheral device pads the remainder, if any, to make a fullframe.

(5) To send the sequence of full frames (including the paddedremainder), the peripheral device writes each frame one by one as thevalue of the exposed characteristic for writing, and then notify theuser device of the updated value. In some embodiments, thecharacteristic has the “indicate” property enabled, thus, each time, theperipheral device writes a new value (e.g., the next unsent frame in thefull frame sequence) to the characteristic for writing, the new value ispushed to the user device. In some embodiments, it is also possible touse “notify” instead of “indicate” as the enabled property for thecharacteristic for writing. However, “indicate” mode requires aconfirmation, and the confirmation allows the peripheral device to knowwhen to send the next unsent frame in the sequence.

(6) On the side of the user device, the user device receives theindication of the updated value in the exposed characteristic forwriting.

(7) Once the user device obtains the current value in the exposedcharacteristic for writing, the user device sends a respectiveconfirmation for the receipt of the value (i.e., the current frame).

(8) Once the peripheral device receives the confirmation that a currentframe in the exposed characteristic for writing has been received, theperipheral device writes the next unsent frame as the value for thecharacteristic for writing, and push the updated value to the userdevice via the indication mode.

(9) Steps 6-8 are repeated until the peripheral device has finishedsending all frames in the full frame sequence.

(10) When the user device receives all of the frames in the full framesequence, the user device can reassemble the data packet (e.g., theRequest).

FIG. 9B shows how a data packet (e.g., a Push Request or a Response) canbe transmitted from the user device to the peripheral device via theBluetooth Low Energy connection.

(1) The user device obtains the data packet (e.g., a Push Request orResponse) to be sent to the peripheral device. The data packet followsthe format described above.

(2) The user device determines the characteristic (e.g., thecharacteristic 0xFEC7 for reading data) that has been exposed to theuser device for receiving data from the user device. The user deviceobtains the size limit of the value contained in exposed characteristicfor reading.

(4) The peripheral device divides the data packet into a sequence offrames according to the size limit of the exposed characteristic forreading.

(5) If there is any remainder from the frame division above, theperipheral device pads the remainder to make a full frame. The fullframes from the frame division and the padding of the remainder formsthe full frame sequence for the data packet to be sent to the peripheraldevice.

(5) To send the sequence of full frames (including the paddedremainder), the user device writes each frame one by one as the value ofthe exposed characteristic for reading. When the current value in theexposed characteristic for reading is acknowledge by the peripheraldevice, the user device can proceed with writing the next unsent frameto the characteristic.

(6) On the side of the peripheral device, the peripheral device receivesa notification that the value of the characteristic has been updated,reads the value and stores it in a read buffer. The peripheral devicealso optionally sends an acknowledgement for the updated value.

(9) Steps 5-6 are repeated until the user device has finished sendingall frames in the full frame sequence.

(10) When the peripheral device receives all of the frames in the fullframe sequence, the peripheral device can reassemble the data packet(e.g., the Push Request or Response).

In some embodiments, when data packets (e.g., data packets containingRequests, Responses, and Push Requests) are transmitted betweendifferent parties (e.g., peripheral devices, user devices, thecommunication server, and support servers) of the social networkenvironment, the data packet may be sent in sequence and may also besent out of order depending on the particular implementations. In someembodiments, sending and receiving data packets can be done in a duplexfashion. When a device is in the process of sending a data packet, thedevice may receive a data packet at any time.

In some embodiments, it is required that a peripheral device can onlysend the next data packet to the user device when the immediateproceeding data packet has been received. Correspondingly, it isrequired that the user device can only send the next data packet to theperipheral device when the immediate proceeding data packet has beenreceived by the peripheral device. On the peripheral device, there is asequence for outgoing data packets, and there is also a sequence forincoming data packets. The sequence for the outgoing data packetsincludes the packets containing Requests, and the sequence for theincoming data packets includes the packets containing Push Requests andResponses.

In some embodiments, the data packet transmission between the userdevice and the communication server is also duplex. In other words, whenthe user device is sending a packet to the communication server, theuser device may also receive a data packet from the communication serverat any time. The user device can send multiple data packets at the sametime. For example, the user device may send a data packet with a requestfor downloading an image, but before the data packet containing theresponse for the request, the user device can also send another datapacket with a request for downloading a speech message. As such, it iscommon to have data packets that are out of order. In some embodiments,sequential data transmission is optionally implemented, where when adata packet containing a Request is sent, the user device waits for thedata packet containing the corresponding Response. The transmission ofthe data packet for the next Request is not started until the Responsefor the immediate proceeding Request has been received.

In some embodiments, the sequence number for a data packet containing aPush Request is always set to zero, while the sequence numbers for datapackets containing Requests and Responses are never zero.

In some embodiments, the communication server and the support server cansend out a Push Request at any time. In some embodiments, if the supportserver needs a response for a particular Push Request, the supportserver can includes the request for response in the body of the PushRequest, such that the peripheral device receiving the Push Request cansend the requested response in a subsequent Request. The body of theRequest can reference the previously received Push Request from thesupport server.

FIGS. 10A-10C are block diagrams illustrating an exemplary datatransmission processes between a peripheral device, a user device, acommunication server, and a support server in accordance with someembodiments.

As shown in FIG. 10A, a Request (AuthReq(seq=1)) is sent from theperipheral device to the user device, and forwarded by the user deviceto the communication server. A Response to the Request (AuthResp(seq=1)) is send back by the communication server to the user device,and forwarded from the user device to the peripheral device.

Also shown in FIG. 10A, another Request (SendDataEquipSvrReq(seq=2)) issent from the peripheral device, and forwarded to the support serverthrough the user device and the communication server. The Response forthis second Request (SendDatatoEquipSvrResp (seq=2)) is sent back by thesupport server to the peripheral device through the communication serverand the user device.

Also shown in FIG. 10A, the communication server can send a Push Request(DataChangePushReq (seq=0)) to the peripheral device through the userdevice at any time.

Similarly, the support server can also send a Push Request(EquipSvrDataPushReq (seq=0)) to the peripheral device through thecommunication server and the user device at any time.

FIG. 10B shows that the communication server may insert a Push Request(e.g., DataChangePushReq (seq=0)) at any time, and the Push Request(e.g., DataChangePushReq(seq=0)) may be sent to the peripheral device(via the user device) before a Response (e.g.,SendDatatoEquipSvrResp(seq=2)) for a previously received Request(SendDataEquipSvr(seq=2)) has been sent back to the peripheral device.

FIG. 10B also shows that the communication server may insert a PushRequest (e.g., EquipSvrDataPushReq (seq=0)) at any time. The PushRequest (e.g., Equip SvrDataPushReq (seq=0)) may be a Push Requestreceived from the communication server, and the communication server mayoptionally send it to the peripheral device (via the user device) beforea Response (e.g., SendDatatoEquipSvrResp(seq=2)) for a previouslyreceived Request (SendDataEquipSvr(seq=2)) has been sent back to theperipheral device.

FIG. 10C illustrates that, when there are multiple data packetscontaining Requests being sent from the peripheral device to thecommunication server and the support server, these data packets mayarrive at the support server out of order (e.g.,“SendDatatoEquipSvrReq(seq=3) arrives at the support server before“SendDatatoEquipSvrReq (seq=2)). Consequently, the Responses for theout-of-order Requests may also be out of order (e.g.,“SendDatatoEquipSvrResp(seq=3) arrives at the communication server, theuser device, and the peripheral device before “SendDatatoEquipSvrResp(seq=2)).

FIG. 11A is a flow chart for an exemplary Bluetooth connection process1100 performed by a peripheral device in accordance with someembodiments.

In some embodiments, the method for connecting a peripheral device to auser device via a Bluetooth connection is performed by the peripheraldevice. In some embodiments, the peripheral device initiates (1102) anbroadcasting process, including: broadcasting a device discoverymessage, the device discovery message comprising a predeterminedidentifier designated for a social networking service associated with asocial networking application executing on the user device. Theperipheral device receives (1112), from the user device, a connectionrequest corresponding to the device discovery message. In response toreceiving the connection request from the user device, the peripheraldevice establishes (1114) a Bluetooth connection to the user device.

In some embodiments, during the broadcasting process: the peripheraldevice broadcasts (1104) the device discovery message within each of aseries of first transmission timeslots during an initial broadcastingperiod; and if no connection request responding to the device discoverymessage is received during the initial broadcasting period, broadcastingthe device discovery message within each of a series of secondtransmission timeslots during a subsequent broadcasting period after theinitial broadcasting period, wherein each first transmission time slotis shorter than each second transmission time slot. In some embodiments,the peripheral device presets (1106) the initial broadcasting period to30 seconds. In some embodiments, the peripheral device presets (1108)each first transmission timeslot to no more than 500 ms. In someembodiments, the peripheral device presets (1110) each secondtransmission timeslot to no more than 3 s. In some embodiments, theperipheral device presets each first transmission timeslot to 500 ms. Insome embodiments, the peripheral device presets each second transmissiontimeslot to 3 s.

In some embodiments, the peripheral device presets (1116) a timeoutwindow of no more than 2 seconds for a connection event between theperipheral device and the user device. In some embodiments, theperipheral device presets a timing gap of 30 ms between two consecutiveconnection events.

In some embodiments, the predetermined identifier is designated by asupplier of the social networking application for a primary service ofthe social networking application.

FIG. 11A is a flow chart for an exemplary Bluetooth connection process1120 performed by a user device in accordance with some embodiments. Theprocess 1120 corresponds to the process 1100. Therefore, the featuresdescribed with respect to the various timing parameters also apply tothe process 1120.

In some embodiments, the user device initiates (1122) a device scanprocess, including: detecting a device discovery message from theperipheral device; and determining whether the device discovery messageincludes a predetermined identifier designated for a social networkingservice associated with a social networking application executing on theuser device. Upon determining that the device discovery message includesthe predetermined identifier designated for the social networkingservice associated with a social networking application executing on theuser device, the user device sends (1124), to the peripheral device, aconnection request corresponding to the device discovery message, andestablishes (1126) a Bluetooth connection to the peripheral device.

Other features and aspects for the above exemplary process are providedin other parts of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 12A-12B are flow charts for an exemplary process 1200 fortransmitting data packets between a peripheral device and a user devicein accordance with some embodiments. The process 1200 is performed bythe peripheral device that has been connected to the user device via aBluetooth Low Energy connection.

In some embodiments, the peripheral device transmits (1202) data (e.g.,a data packet containing a Request) to the user device in a simulateddata stream. To transmit the data in the simulated data stream: theperipheral device identifies (1204) a first Bluetooth characteristic forwriting data (e.g., a Bluetooth characteristic with the “indicate”property enabled), the first Bluetooth characteristic having beenexposed by the peripheral device to the user device in a currentconnection event. The peripheral device divides (1206) a data packet(e.g., a total of 1024 bytes) that is to be transmitted to the userdevice into a sequence of data frames (e.g., 51 frames) plus zero or oneremainder, each data frame having a respective size (e.g., 20 bytes)equal to a predetermined data size (e.g., 20 bytes) of the identifiedfirst Bluetooth characteristic, and the remainder (e.g., 4 bytes) havinga respective size smaller than the predetermined data size of theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic.

In some embodiments, for each of the sequence of data frames: theperipheral device writes (1028) the data frame to a respective value forthe identified first Bluetooth characteristic; and pushes the identifiedfirst Bluetooth characteristic for reading by the user device. In someembodiments, pushing the identified first Bluetooth characteristic forreading by the user device further includes (1210) requesting the userdevice to read an updated value of the identified first Bluetoothcharacteristic through an indication operation.

In some embodiments, the peripheral device pads (1212) the reminder (ifany) to obtain a padded remainder have a respective size (e.g., 20bytes) equal to the predetermined size (e.g., 20 bytes) of theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic. The peripheral device writes(1214) the padded reminder to the respective value for the identifiedfirst Bluetooth characteristic. The peripheral device pushes theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic for reading by the userdevice.

In some embodiments, for each of the sequence of data frames: theperipheral device receives (1216) a respective confirmation for readingof the identified first Bluetooth characteristic from the user device,wherein the writing and the pushing of a next data frame in the sequenceof data frames is performed in response to receiving the respectiveconfirmation until no more data frame or remainder in the data packetremains to be transmitted.

In some embodiments, the user device reassembles the respective valuesread from the identified first Bluetooth characteristic into the datapacket.

In some embodiments, the data packet includes a message originated fromthe peripheral device and targeting a support service provider of theperipheral device. In some embodiments, the data packet includes amessage originated from the peripheral device and targeting a user ofthe user device. In some embodiments, the data packet includes a messageoriginated from the peripheral device and targeting a social networkcontact of a user of the user device. In some embodiments, the socialnetwork contact of the user of the user device is another user. In someembodiments, the social network contact of the user of the user deviceis another peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the peripheral device receives (1218) data from theuser device in a second simulated data stream. To receive the data fromthe user device in the second simulated data stream, the peripheraldevice receives (1220) a sequence of write requests from the user deviceto write to a second Bluetooth characteristic for receiving data, thesecond Bluetooth characteristic having been exposed by the peripheraldevice to the user device in the current connection event. In responseto receiving each of the sequence of write requests, the peripheraldevice reads (1222) a respective value in the second Bluetoothcharacteristic. In a read buffer of the peripheral device, theperipheral device stores (1224) the respective value that has been readin response to each of the sequence of write requests. The peripheraldevice reassembles (1226) the respective values stored in the readbuffer into a second data packet.

In some embodiments, the second data packet is an instruction originatedfrom a support service provider of the peripheral device and targetingthe peripheral device. In some embodiments, the second data packet is aninstruction originated from a communication server of a social networkclient application executing on the user device, and targeting theperipheral device. In some embodiments, the second data packet is aresponse for a previous request sent by the peripheral device.

FIGS. 13A-13B are flow charts for an exemplary process 1300 fortransmitting data packets between a peripheral device and a user devicein accordance with some embodiments. The process 1300 is performed bythe user device that has been connected to the peripheral device via aBluetooth Low Energy connection.

In some embodiments, the user device transmits (1302) data to theperipheral device in a simulated data stream. To transmit the data inthe simulated data stream, the user device identifies (1304) a firstBluetooth characteristic (e.g., the characteristic with the writingproperty enabled) for sending data to the peripheral device, the firstBluetooth characteristic having been exposed by the peripheral device tothe user device in the current connection event. The user device divides(1306) a first data packet that is to be transmitted to the peripheraldevice into a sequence of data frames plus zero or one remainder, eachdata frame having a respective size equal to a predetermined data sizeof the identified first Bluetooth characteristic, and the remainderhaving a respective size smaller than the predetermined data size of theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic. For each of the sequence ofdata frames, the user device sends (1308) a respective write request towriting the data frame to a respective value of the identified firstBluetooth characteristic.

In some embodiments, if there is a remainder after the frame division,the user device pads (1310) the reminder to obtain a padded remainderhave a respective size equal to the predetermined data size of theidentified first Bluetooth characteristic. The user device also sends(312) a respective write request to write the padded remainder to therespective value of the identified first Bluetooth characteristic.

In some embodiments, for each of the sequence of data frames: the userdevice receives (1314) a respective acknowledgement for the respectivewrite request associated with the data frame, wherein the respectivewrite request for a next data frame in the sequence of data frames issent in response to receiving the respective acknowledgement until nomore data frame or remainder in the first data packet remains to betransmitted.

In some embodiments, the peripheral device reassembles the respectivedata values written to the identified first Bluetooth characteristicinto the first data packet. In some embodiments, the first data packetincludes an instruction originated from a support service provider ofthe peripheral device and targeting the peripheral device. In someembodiments, the first data packet includes an instruction originatedfrom a communication server of a social networking client applicationexecuting on the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the user device receives (1316) data from theperipheral device in a second simulated data stream. To receive the datain the second simulated data stream: the user device receives (1318) asequence of indications from the peripheral device to read a secondBluetooth characteristic (e.g., the characteristic with the indicateproperty enabled), the second Bluetooth characteristic having beenexposed by the peripheral device to the user device in the currentconnection event. In response to receiving each of the sequence ofindications: the user device reads (1320) a respective value in thesecond Bluetooth characteristic, sends a respective confirmation forreading the respective value; and stores the respective value in a readbuffer of the user device. The user device reassembles (1322) therespective values stored in the read buffer into a second data packet.

In some embodiments, the second data packet includes a messageoriginated from the peripheral device and targeting a support serviceprovider of the peripheral device. In some embodiments, the second datapacket includes a message originated from the peripheral devicetargeting a user of the user device. In some embodiments, the seconddata packet is a message originated from the peripheral device andtargeting a social network contact of a user of the user device.

Other aspects and features of the processes shown in FIGS. 12A-12B, and13A-13B are described in other parts of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 14A-14B are flow charts for an exemplary process 1400 fortransmitting messages (e.g., data packets containing respectiveRequests, Response, and Push Requests) for access and controlling aperipheral device over a social networking platform in accordance withsome embodiments.

In some embodiments, the process 1400 is performed at a server (e.g., asupport server) of a support service provider for a type of peripheraldevices including the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the support server registers (1402) with a serverof the social network platform as the support service provider for theperipheral device. The support server initiates (1404) a communicationevent to send an instruction to the peripheral device, initiating thecommunication event including: generating a push request data packet forthe instruction, wherein the push request data packet identifies theperipheral device as a target of the instruction; and sending the pushrequest data packet to the peripheral device via the server of thesocial networking platform and a user device coupled to the peripheraldevice. In some embodiments, the push request data packet does notrequire a response from the target of the instruction and the methodfurther includes concluding the communication event after sending therequest data packet without receiving any response for the push requestdata packet from the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the support server receives (1406) a request datapacket from the peripheral device via the user device coupled to theperipheral device and the server of the social networking platform. Inresponse to receiving the request data packet from the peripheraldevice, the support server sends (1408) a response data packet to theperipheral device via the server of the social networking platform andthe user device coupled to the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the push request data packet, the request datapacket, and the response data packet have (1410) a fixed-length packetheader, and a variable-length packet body. In some embodiments, thefixed-length packet header includes a predetermined command identifierand a respective packet sequence number. In some embodiments, theresponse data packet includes a first packet sequence number thatmatches a second packet sequence number included in the request datapacket, and the push request data packet includes a third packetsequence number different from the first and the second packet sequencenumber.

In some embodiments, the predetermined command identifier corresponds toa command for accessing a respective function of a social networkplatform. In some embodiments, the command is for accessing a userauthentication function of the social network platform, and the packetbody specifying a type of user identity assigned to the peripheraldevice on the social network platform. In some embodiments, the commandis for accessing a contact listing for the peripheral device on thesocial network platform, and the packet body specifying at least onecontact representing a user, a support service provider, or anotherperipheral device. In some embodiments, the command is for accessing amessaging function on the social network platform, and the packet bodyspecifying a message targeting at least one contact representing a user,a support service provider, or another peripheral device. In someembodiments, the command is for accessing a messaging function on thesocial network platform, and the packet body specifying a messageoriginated from at least one contact representing a user, a supportservice provider, or another peripheral device. In some embodiments, thecommand is for accessing a messaging function on the social networkplatform, and the packet body specifying a message targeting at leastone contact representing a user, a support service provider, or anotherperipheral device. In some embodiments, the command is for accessing agroup chat function on the social network platform, and the packet bodyspecifying a group chat session between the peripheral device and two ormore respective social network contacts of the peripheral device,including two or more of a plurality of users, a support serviceprovider, and a plurality of other peripheral devices. In someembodiments, the command is for accessing a conversation log function onthe social network platform, and the packet body specifying aconversation log for a chat session between the peripheral device andone or more respective social network contacts of the peripheral device,including one or more of a plurality of users, a support serviceprovider, and a plurality of other peripheral devices. Other types ofcommands are described in other parts of the present disclosure or maybe apparent in light of the usage examples provided in the presentdisclosure.

Other aspects and features of the processes shown in FIGS. 14A-14B aredescribed in other parts of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 15A-15B are flow charts for an exemplary process 1500 fortransmitting messages (e.g., data packets containing respectiveRequests, Response, and Push Requests) for access and controlling aperipheral device over a social networking platform in accordance withsome embodiments.

In some embodiments, the process 1500 is performed at a server (e.g., acommunication server) of a social network platform.

In some embodiments, the communication server registers (1502) theperipheral device as an associated peripheral device of a user devicecoupled to the peripheral device. The communication server receives(1504) a first push request data packet from a support service providerfor a type of peripheral devices including the peripheral device,wherein the first push request data packet identifies the peripheraldevice as a target of the first push request data packet. In response toreceiving the first push request data packet, the communication serverforwards (1506) the first push request data packet to the peripheraldevice via the user device coupled to the peripheral device. In someembodiments, the first push request data packet does not require aresponse from the target of the instruction.

In some embodiments, the communication server initiates (1508) acommunication event to send an instruction to the peripheral device,initiating the communication event comprising: generating a second pushrequest data packet for the instruction, wherein the second push requestdata packet identifies the peripheral device as a target of theinstruction; and sending the second push request data packet to theperipheral device via the user device coupled to the peripheral device.In some embodiments, the second push request data packet does notrequire a response from the target of the instruction, and the methodfurther includes concluding the communication event after sending thesecond push request data packet without receiving any response for thesecond push request data packet from the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the communication server receives (1510) a secondrequest data packet from the peripheral device via the user devicecoupled to the peripheral device, the second request data packetidentifying the support service provider as a target of the secondrequest data packet. In response to receiving the second request datapacket from the peripheral device, the communication server forwards(1512) the second request data packet to the server of the supportservice provider. In some embodiments, in response to forwarding thesecond request data packet to the server of the support serviceprovider, the communication server receives a second response datapacket from the server of the support service provider, the secondresponse data packet being generated by the server of the supportservice provider in response to the second request data packet. Inresponse to receiving the second response data packet, the communicationserver forwards (1516) the second response data packet to the peripheraldevice via the user device coupled to the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the push request data packet, the request datapacket, and the response data packet have (1410) a fixed-length packetheader, and a variable-length packet body. In some embodiments, thefixed-length packet header includes a predetermined command identifierand a respective packet sequence number. In some embodiments, theresponse data packet includes a first packet sequence number thatmatches a second packet sequence number included in the request datapacket, and the push request data packet includes a third packetsequence number different from the first and the second packet sequencenumber.

In some embodiments, the predetermined command identifier corresponds toa command for accessing a respective function of a social networkplatform. In some embodiments, the command is for accessing a userauthentication function of the social network platform, and the packetbody specifying a type of user identity assigned to the peripheraldevice on the social network platform. In some embodiments, the commandis for accessing a contact listing for the peripheral device on thesocial network platform, and the packet body specifying at least onecontact representing a user, a support service provider, or anotherperipheral device. In some embodiments, the command is for accessing amessaging function on the social network platform, and the packet bodyspecifying a message targeting at least one contact representing a user,a support service provider, or another peripheral device. In someembodiments, the command is for accessing a messaging function on thesocial network platform, and the packet body specifying a messageoriginated from at least one contact representing a user, a supportservice provider, or another peripheral device. In some embodiments, thecommand is for accessing a messaging function on the social networkplatform, and the packet body specifying a message targeting at leastone contact representing a user, a support service provider, or anotherperipheral device. In some embodiments, the command is for accessing agroup chat function on the social network platform, and the packet bodyspecifying a group chat session between the peripheral device and two ormore respective social network contacts of the peripheral device,including two or more of a plurality of users, a support serviceprovider, and a plurality of other peripheral devices. In someembodiments, the command is for accessing a conversation log function onthe social network platform, and the packet body specifying aconversation log for a chat session between the peripheral device andone or more respective social network contacts of the peripheral device,including one or more of a plurality of users, a support serviceprovider, and a plurality of other peripheral devices. Other types ofcommands are described in other parts of the present disclosure or maybe apparent in light of the usage examples provided in the presentdisclosure.

Other aspects and features of the processes shown in FIGS. 15A-15B aredescribed in other parts of the present disclosure

FIG. 16 is a flow chart for an exemplary process 1600 for transmittingmessages (e.g., data packets containing respective Requests, Response,and Push Requests) for access and controlling a peripheral device over asocial networking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

In some embodiments, the process 1600 is performed by a user devicecoupled to the peripheral device.

In some embodiments, the user device registers (1602) the peripheraldevice as an associated peripheral device of the user device with aserver of the social networking platform. The device receives (1604) apush request data packet from the server of the social networkingplatform, wherein the push request data packet identifies the peripheraldevice as a target of the push request data packet. In some embodiments,the push request data packet does not require a response from the targetof the push request data packet. The user device forwards (1606) thepush request data packet to the peripheral device. In some embodiments,the user device receives (1608) a request data packet from theperipheral device; and in response to receiving the request data packetfrom the peripheral device, the user device sends (1610) a response datapacket to the peripheral device.

Other aspects and features of the processes shown in FIGS. 14A-14B aredescribed in other parts of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 17-20 are block diagrams of various devices and systems operatingin the social networking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 17 is a block diagram illustrating a representative peripheraldevice 1700 associated with a user in accordance with some embodiments.Peripheral device 1700 can serve as the peripheral device (e.g.,peripheral devices 118 shown in FIGS. 1B, 2K-2T, 8, 9A-9B, 10A-10C, andperipheral device 200 shown in FIG. 2A) that can be controlled andaccessed via a social network platform in accordance with theembodiments described in the present disclosure. Examples of theperipheral devices include, but are not limited to, smart watches,health monitors (e.g., heart rate or blood pressure monitors,pacemakers, lifestyle monitoring wristbands, etc.), music players,climate controls (e.g., weather monitors, temperature control, heaters,air conditioners, humidity controls, etc.), lighting controls, securitymonitoring systems, smart coffee makers, charging stations (e.g.,charging station for electric cars or electronic equipments, etc.),navigation systems (e.g., GPS systems), sports equipment (e.g., smartgolf clubs, smart fishing poles, smart basketballs, etc.), set-top boxes(e.g., online streaming set-top boxes, online gaming devices, etc.).

Peripheral device 1700, typically, includes one or more processing units(CPUs) 1702, one or more network interfaces 1704, memory 1706, and oneor more communication buses 1708 for interconnecting these components(sometimes called a chipset). Peripheral device 1700 also optionallyincludes a user interface 1710. User interface 1710 includes one or moreoutput devices 1712 that enable presentation of media content, includingone or more speakers and/or one or more visual displays. User interface1710 also includes one or more input devices 1714, including userinterface components that facilitate user input such as a keyboard, amouse, a voice-command input unit or microphone, a touch-screen display,a touch-sensitive input pad, a gesture capturing camera, or other inputbuttons or controls, etc.

Memory 1706 includes high-speed random access memory, such as DRAM,SRAM, DDR RAM, or other random access solid state memory devices; and,optionally, includes non-volatile memory, such as one or more magneticdisk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memorydevices, or other non-volatile solid state storage devices. Memory 1706,optionally, includes one or more storage devices remotely located fromCPU(s) 1702. Memory 1706, or alternately the non-volatile memorydevice(s) within memory 1706, includes a non-transitory computerreadable storage medium. In some implementations, memory 1706, or thenon-transitory computer readable storage medium of memory 1706, storesthe following programs, modules, and data structures, or a subset orsuperset thereof:

-   -   an operating system 1716 including procedures for handling        various basic system services and for performing hardware        dependent tasks;    -   a network communication module 1718 for connecting the        peripheral device 1700 to other computing devices (e.g., user        device 104) via one or more network interfaces 1704 (wired or        wireless) (e.g., Bluetooth interface, WiFi, Bluetooth Low        Energy, USB, etc.);    -   a presentation module 1720 for enabling presentation of        information (e.g., a user interface for operating the peripheral        device and displaying content and information) at the peripheral        device 1700 via one or more output devices 1712 (e.g., displays,        speakers, etc.) associated with user interface 1710; and    -   an input processing module 1722 for detecting one or more user        inputs or interactions from one of the one or more input devices        1714 and interpreting the detected input or interaction.

In some embodiments, memory 1706 also includes a peripheral devicemodule 1724 for performing data processing for performing nativeoperations of the peripheral device, as well as the operations needed tocommunicate with other devices and/or users over a social networkplatform as described herein. In some embodiments, peripheral devicemodule 1724 includes, but is not limited to:

-   -   a connection module 1726, configured to set up a connection with        a user device executing a social network client application. The        connection module for example, implements the connection        protocols described herein for broadcasting a service ID for the        social network application, and accepting connection requests        from the user device;    -   a data transmission module 1728, configured to generating the        data packet to be send to the user device, and transmitting the        data packet according to the data transmission protocol        agreement between the user device and the peripheral device; and        configured to receive and re-assemble the data packet from the        user device according to the data transmission protocol        agreement between the user device and the peripheral device;    -   a message generation module 1730, configured to prepare requests        (e.g., including encoded instructions and encoded messages)        targeting other users, other peripheral devices, the        communication server, the support server, etc.;    -   a message interpretation module 1732, configured to parse        received requests (e.g., including encoded instructions) into        internal operations;    -   a function execution module 1734, configured to carry out the        functions or tasks requested in the received requests; and    -   other modules 1736 configured to perform other functions        described herein with respect to interaction on the social        network platform.

Each of the above identified elements may be stored in one or more ofthe previously mentioned memory devices, and corresponds to a set ofinstructions for performing a function described above. The aboveidentified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not beimplemented as separate software programs, procedures, modules or datastructures, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined orotherwise re-arranged in various implementations. In someimplementations, memory 1706, optionally, stores a subset of the modulesand data structures identified above. Furthermore, memory 1706,optionally, stores additional modules and data structures not describedabove.

FIG. 18 is a block diagram illustrating a representative user device1800 associated with a user in accordance with some embodiments. Userdevice 1800 can serve as the user device (e.g., user devices 104 shownin FIGS. 1B, 2K-2T, 8, 9A-9B, 10A-10C, and user device 202 shown inFIGS. 2B-2H) that can be used to control and access a peripheral device(e.g., a locally connected peripheral device or a peripheral deviceconnected to another user device) via a social network platform, inaccordance with the embodiments described in the present disclosure.Examples of the user devices include, but are not limited to, a smartphone, a tablet device, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a gamingdevice, etc.

User device 1800, typically, includes one or more processing units(CPUs) 1802, one or more network interfaces 1804, memory 1806, and oneor more communication buses 1808 for interconnecting these components(sometimes called a chipset). User device 1800 also optionally includesa user interface 1810. User interface 1810 includes one or more outputdevices 1812 that enable presentation of media content, including one ormore speakers and/or one or more visual displays. User interface 1810also includes one or more input devices 1814, including user interfacecomponents that facilitate user input such as a keyboard, a mouse, avoice-command input unit or microphone, a touch-screen display, atouch-sensitive input pad, a gesture capturing camera, or other inputbuttons or controls, etc.

Memory 1806 includes high-speed random access memory, such as DRAM,SRAM, DDR RAM, or other random access solid state memory devices; and,optionally, includes non-volatile memory, such as one or more magneticdisk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memorydevices, or other non-volatile solid state storage devices. Memory 1806,optionally, includes one or more storage devices remotely located fromCPU(s) 1802. Memory 1806, or alternately the non-volatile memorydevice(s) within memory 1806, includes a non-transitory computerreadable storage medium. In some implementations, memory 1806, or thenon-transitory computer readable storage medium of memory 1806, storesthe following programs, modules, and data structures, or a subset orsuperset thereof:

-   -   an operating system 1816 including procedures for handling        various basic system services and for performing hardware        dependent tasks;    -   a network communication module 1818 for connecting the user        device 1800 to other computing devices (e.g., peripheral device        118 or communication server 112) via one or more network        interfaces 1804 (wired or wireless) (e.g., Bluetooth interface,        WiFi, Bluetooth Low Energy, USB, etc., Ethernet, LAN, WAN,        etc.);    -   a presentation module 1820 for enabling presentation of        information (e.g., a user interface for operating the user        device and displaying content and information) at the user        device 1800 via one or more output devices 1812 (e.g., displays,        speakers, etc.) associated with user interface 1810; and    -   an input processing module 1822 for detecting one or more user        inputs or interactions from one of the one or more input devices        1814 and interpreting the detected input or interaction.

In some embodiments, memory 1806 also includes a social network clientmodule 1824 for performing data processing for performing variousfunctions on the social network platform provided by a provider of thesocial network platform, including the operations needed to enableaccess and control of peripheral devices over the social networkplatform as described herein. In some embodiments, the social networkclient module 1824 includes, but is not limited to:

-   -   a binding module 1826, configured to bind a peripheral device to        the user device and a user account currently active within the        social network client application executing on the user device;    -   a connection module 1828, configured to set up a connection with        a peripheral device that has been bound to the user device. The        connection module for example, implements the connection        protocols described herein for detecting the service ID for the        social network application, and initiating connection requests        to the peripheral device;    -   a data transmission module 1830, configured to transmit and        receive data packets to and from the communication server        according to the data transmission protocol agreement between        the user device and the communication server; and configured to        transmit and receive data packet to and from the peripheral        device according to the data transmission protocol agreement        between the user device and the peripheral device;    -   a conversation module 1832, configured to establish one-to-one        conversations, and group chat sessions, and parse received        messages (e.g., instant) and present the messages in a        conversation log of the corresponding chat session;    -   a contact management module 1834, configured to manage contacts        of the active user account, including contacts representing        peripheral devices; and    -   other modules 1836 configured to perform other functions        described herein with respect to interaction on the social        network platform.

Each of the above identified elements may be stored in one or more ofthe previously mentioned memory devices, and corresponds to a set ofinstructions for performing a function described above. The aboveidentified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not beimplemented as separate software programs, procedures, modules or datastructures, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined orotherwise re-arranged in various implementations. In someimplementations, memory 1706, optionally, stores a subset of the modulesand data structures identified above. Furthermore, memory 1706,optionally, stores additional modules and data structures not describedabove.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating a representative server system1900 for an exemplary social network platform in accordance with someembodiments. Server system 1900 can serve as the communication server(e.g., communication server 112 b shown in FIG. 1B, communicationservers 112 shown in FIGS. 10A-10C) that provide the social networkingservices for users and peripheral devices in accordance with theembodiments described in the present disclosure. The server system 1900may be provided by one or more computer systems including virtual andphysical resources.

Server system 1900, typically, includes one or more processing units(CPUs) 1902, one or more network interfaces 1904, memory 1906, and oneor more communication buses 1908 for interconnecting these components(sometimes called a chipset). Server system 1900 also optionallyincludes a user interface 1910. User interface 1910 includes one or moreoutput devices 1912 that enable presentation of media content, includingone or more speakers and/or one or more visual displays. User interface1910 also includes one or more input devices 1914, including userinterface components that facilitate user input such as a keyboard, amouse, a voice-command input unit or microphone, a touch-screen display,a touch-sensitive input pad, a gesture capturing camera, or other inputbuttons or controls, etc.

Memory 1906 includes high-speed random access memory, such as DRAM,SRAM, DDR RAM, or other random access solid state memory devices; and,optionally, includes non-volatile memory, such as one or more magneticdisk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memorydevices, or other non-volatile solid state storage devices. Memory 1906,optionally, includes one or more storage devices remotely located fromCPU(s) 1902. Memory 1906, or alternately the non-volatile memorydevice(s) within memory 1906, includes a non-transitory computerreadable storage medium. In some implementations, memory 1906, or thenon-transitory computer readable storage medium of memory 1906, storesthe following programs, modules, and data structures, or a subset orsuperset thereof:

-   -   an operating system 1916 including procedures for handling        various basic system services and for performing hardware        dependent tasks;    -   a network communication module 1918 for connecting to other        computing devices (e.g., user device 104 or support servers 116)        over the networks 106 via one or more network interfaces 1904        (wired or wireless) (e.g., WiFi, Ethernet, LAN, WAN, etc.);    -   a presentation module 1920 for enabling presentation of        information (e.g., a user interface for operating the server        system and displaying content and information) at the server        system 1900 via one or more output devices 1912 (e.g., displays,        speakers, etc.) associated with user interface 1910; and    -   an input processing module 1922 for detecting one or more user        inputs or interactions from one of the one or more input devices        1914 and interpreting the detected input or interaction.

In some embodiments, memory 1906 also includes a social network servermodule 1924 for performing data processing for supporting the varioususer and backend functions on the social network platform, including theoperations needed to enable access and control of peripheral devicesover the social network platform as described herein. In someembodiments, the social network server module 1924 includes, but is notlimited to:

-   -   a binding module 1926, configured to bind a peripheral device to        a corresponding user account;    -   a user management module 1920 configured to register users,        support service providers, and peripheral devices, and assign        respective social network identities to the registered users,        support service providers, and peripheral devices;    -   a communication module 1930, configured to prepare messages        (e.g., messages and instructions in Push Requests) to be sent to        the user, and peripheral devices, and support servers;        configured to interpret received requests, forward received        requests to the support servers, forwarding received responses        to the peripheral devices and/or user devices;    -   a conversation module 1932, configured to establish one-to-one        conversations, and group chat sessions, and manage conversation        logs for the corresponding chat sessions; and    -   other modules 1934 configured to perform other functions        described herein with respect to interaction on the social        network platform.

Each of the above identified elements may be stored in one or more ofthe previously mentioned memory devices, and corresponds to a set ofinstructions for performing a function described above. The aboveidentified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not beimplemented as separate software programs, procedures, modules or datastructures, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined orotherwise re-arranged in various implementations. In someimplementations, memory 1706, optionally, stores a subset of the modulesand data structures identified above. Furthermore, memory 1706,optionally, stores additional modules and data structures not describedabove.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating a representative server system2000 of a support service provider that provides support for one or moretypes of peripheral devices in accordance with some embodiments. Serversystem 2000 can serve as the support server (e.g., support server 116shown in FIGS. 1B and 10A-10C) that provides the support services forusers and peripheral devices in accordance with the embodimentsdescribed in the present disclosure. The support server also performstranslations of encoded instructions and messages to and from regularinstant messages for presentation to the human users. The server system2000 may be provided by one or more computer systems including virtualand physical resources.

Server system 2000, typically, includes one or more processing units(CPUs) 2002, one or more network interfaces 2004, memory 2006, and oneor more communication buses 2008 for interconnecting these components(sometimes called a chipset). Server system 2000 also optionallyincludes a user interface 2010. User interface 2010 includes one or moreoutput devices 2012 that enable presentation of media content, includingone or more speakers and/or one or more visual displays. User interface2010 also includes one or more input devices 2014, including userinterface components that facilitate user input such as a keyboard, amouse, a voice-command input unit or microphone, a touch-screen display,a touch-sensitive input pad, a gesture capturing camera, or other inputbuttons or controls, etc.

Memory 2006 includes high-speed random access memory, such as DRAM,SRAM, DDR RAM, or other random access solid state memory devices; and,optionally, includes non-volatile memory, such as one or more magneticdisk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memorydevices, or other non-volatile solid state storage devices. Memory 2006,optionally, includes one or more storage devices remotely located fromCPU(s) 2002. Memory 2006, or alternately the non-volatile memorydevice(s) within memory 2006, includes a non-transitory computerreadable storage medium. In some implementations, memory 2006, or thenon-transitory computer readable storage medium of memory 2006, storesthe following programs, modules, and data structures, or a subset orsuperset thereof:

-   -   an operating system 2016 including procedures for handling        various basic system services and for performing hardware        dependent tasks;    -   a network communication module 2018 for connecting to other        computing devices (e.g., user device 104 or communication server        112) over the networks 106 via one or more network interfaces        2004 (wired or wireless) (e.g., WiFi, Ethernet, LAN, WAN, etc.);    -   a presentation module 2020 for enabling presentation of        information (e.g., a user interface for operating the server        system and displaying content and information) at the server        system 2000 via one or more output devices 2012 (e.g., displays,        speakers, etc.) associated with user interface 2010; and    -   an input processing module 2022 for detecting one or more user        inputs or interactions from one of the one or more input devices        2014 and interpreting the detected input or interaction.

In some embodiments, memory 2006 also includes a support server module2024 for performing data processing for supporting the various supportfunctions (e.g., performing equipment diagnostics, providing customersupport, etc.) on the social network platform, including providing theencoded instructions for controlling the peripheral devices, andproviding the translations of the encoded messages to instant messagesfor presentation to the human users as described herein. In someembodiments, the support server module 2024 includes, but is not limitedto:

-   -   a registration module 2026, configured to register a service        account with the communication module;    -   a device management module 2020 configured to manage social        network relationships with register users and peripheral devices        using the functions of the social network platform;    -   a communication module 2030, configured to prepare messages        (e.g., messages and instructions in Push Requests) to be sent to        the user, and peripheral devices, and support servers;        configured to interpret received requests, forward received        requests to the support servers, forwarding received responses        to the peripheral devices and/or user devices;    -   a conversation module 2032, configured to establish one-to-one        conversations, and group chat sessions with users and peripheral        devices; and    -   other modules 2034 configured to perform other functions        described herein with respect to interaction on the social        network platform.

Each of the above identified elements may be stored in one or more ofthe previously mentioned memory devices, and corresponds to a set ofinstructions for performing a function described above. The aboveidentified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not beimplemented as separate software programs, procedures, modules or datastructures, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined orotherwise re-arranged in various implementations. In someimplementations, memory 1706, optionally, stores a subset of the modulesand data structures identified above. Furthermore, memory 1706,optionally, stores additional modules and data structures not describedabove.

FIGS. 21-24 are block diagrams of various devices and systems operatingin the social networking platform in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 21 is a block diagram illustrating a representative peripheraldevice 1700 associated with a user in accordance with some embodiments.Peripheral device 1700 can serve as the peripheral device (e.g.,peripheral devices 118 shown in FIGS. 1B, 2K-2T, 8, 9A-9B, 10A-10C, andperipheral device 200 shown in FIG. 2A) that can be controlled andaccessed via a social network platform in accordance with theembodiments described in the present disclosure. Examples of theperipheral devices include, but are not limited to, smart watches,health monitors (e.g., heart rate or blood pressure monitors,pacemakers, lifestyle monitoring wristbands, etc.), music players,climate controls (e.g., weather monitors, temperature control, heaters,air conditioners, humidity controls, etc.), lighting controls, securitymonitoring systems, smart coffee makers, charging stations (e.g.,charging station for electric cars or electronic equipments, etc.),navigation systems (e.g., GPS systems), sports equipment (e.g., smartgolf clubs, smart fishing poles, smart basketballs, etc.), set-top boxes(e.g., online streaming set-top boxes, online gaming devices, etc.).

In some embodiments, peripheral device also includes a peripheral devicemodule 1724 for performing data processing for performing nativeoperations of the peripheral device, as well as the operations needed tocommunicate with other devices and/or users over a social networkplatform as described herein. In some embodiments, peripheral devicemodule 1724 includes, but is not limited to: a connection unit 1726,configured to set up a connection with a user device executing a socialnetwork client application. The connection module for example,implements the connection protocols described herein for broadcasting aservice ID for the social network application, and accepting connectionrequests from the user device; a data transmission unit 1728, configuredto generating the data packet to be send to the user device, andtransmitting the data packet according to the data transmission protocolagreement between the user device and the peripheral device; andconfigured to receive and re-assemble the data packet from the userdevice according to the data transmission protocol agreement between theuser device and the peripheral device; a message generation unit 1730,configured to prepare requests (e.g., including encoded instructions andencoded messages) targeting other users, other peripheral devices, thecommunication server, the support server, etc.; a message interpretationunit 1732, configured to parse received requests (e.g., includingencoded instructions) into internal operations; a function executionunit 1734, configured to carry out the functions or tasks requested inthe received requests; and other modules unit configured to performother functions described herein with respect to interaction on thesocial network platform.

FIG. 22 is a block diagram illustrating a representative user device2200 associated with a user in accordance with some embodiments. Userdevice 2200 can serve as the user device (e.g., user devices 104 shownin FIGS. 1B, 2K-2T, 8, 9A-9B, 10A-10C, and user device 202 shown inFIGS. 2B-2H) that can be used to control and access a peripheral device(e.g., a locally connected peripheral device or a peripheral deviceconnected to another user device) via a social network platform, inaccordance with the embodiments described in the present disclosure.Examples of the user devices include, but are not limited to, a smartphone, a tablet device, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a gamingdevice, etc.

In some embodiments, user device 2200 also includes a social networkclient module 2224 for performing data processing for performing variousfunctions on the social network platform provided by a provider of thesocial network platform, including the operations needed to enableaccess and control of peripheral devices over the social networkplatform as described herein. In some embodiments, the social networkclient module 2224 includes, but is not limited to: a binding unit 2226,configured to bind a peripheral device to the user device and a useraccount currently active within the social network client applicationexecuting on the user device; a connection unit 2228, configured to setup a connection with a peripheral device that has been bound to the userdevice. The connection module for example, implements the connectionprotocols described herein for detecting the service ID for the socialnetwork application, and initiating connection requests to theperipheral device; a data transmission unit 2230, configured to transmitand receive data packets to and from the communication server accordingto the data transmission protocol agreement between the user device andthe communication server; and configured to transmit and receive datapacket to and from the peripheral device according to the datatransmission protocol agreement between the user device and theperipheral device; a conversation unit 2232, configured to establishone-to-one conversations, and group chat sessions, and parse receivedmessages (e.g., instant) and present the messages in a conversation logof the corresponding chat session; a contact management unit 2234,configured to manage contacts of the active user account, includingcontacts representing peripheral devices; and other units 2236configured to perform other functions described herein with respect tointeraction on the social network platform.

FIG. 23 is a block diagram illustrating a representative server system2300 for an exemplary social network platform in accordance with someembodiments. Server system 2300 can serve as the communication server(e.g., communication server 112 b shown in FIG. 1B, communicationservers 112 shown in FIGS. 10A-10C) that provide the social networkingservices for users and peripheral devices in accordance with theembodiments described in the present disclosure. The server system 2300may be provided by one or more computer systems including virtual andphysical resources.

In some embodiments, the server system 2300 includes a social networkserver module 2324 for performing data processing for supporting thevarious user and backend functions on the social network platform,including the operations needed to enable access and control ofperipheral devices over the social network platform as described herein.In some embodiments, the social network server module 2324 includes, butis not limited to: a binding unit 2326, configured to bind a peripheraldevice to a corresponding user account; a user management unit 2320configured to register users, support service providers, and peripheraldevices, and assign respective social network identities to theregistered users, support service providers, and peripheral devices; acommunication unit 2330, configured to prepare messages (e.g., messagesand instructions in Push Requests) to be sent to the user, andperipheral devices, and support servers; configured to interpretreceived requests, forward received requests to the support servers,forwarding received responses to the peripheral devices and/or userdevices; a conversation unit 2332, configured to establish one-to-oneconversations, and group chat sessions, and manage conversation logs forthe corresponding chat sessions; and other units 2334 configured toperform other functions described herein with respect to interaction onthe social network platform.

FIG. 24 is a block diagram illustrating a representative server system2400 of a support service provider that provides support for one or moretypes of peripheral devices in accordance with some embodiments. Serversystem 2400 can serve as the support server (e.g., support server 116shown in FIGS. 1B and 10A-10C) that provides the support services forusers and peripheral devices in accordance with the embodimentsdescribed in the present disclosure. The support server also performstranslations of encoded instructions and messages to and from regularinstant messages for presentation to the human users. The server system2400 may be provided by one or more computer systems including virtualand physical resources.

In some embodiments, the server system 2400 includes a support servermodule 2424 for performing data processing for supporting the varioussupport functions (e.g., performing equipment diagnostics, providingcustomer support, etc.) on the social network platform, includingproviding the encoded instructions for controlling the peripheraldevices, and providing the translations of the encoded messages toinstant messages for presentation to the human users as describedherein. In some embodiments, the support server module 2424 includes,but is not limited to: a registration unit 2426, configured to registera service account with the communication module; a device managementunit 2420 configured to manage social network relationships withregister users and peripheral devices using the functions of the socialnetwork platform; a communication unit 2430, configured to preparemessages (e.g., messages and instructions in Push Requests) to be sentto the user, and peripheral devices, and support servers; configured tointerpret received requests, forward received requests to the supportservers, forwarding received responses to the peripheral devices and/oruser devices; a conversation module unit, configured to establishone-to-one conversations, and group chat sessions with users andperipheral devices; and other units 2434 configured to perform otherfunctions described herein with respect to interaction on the socialnetwork platform.

While particular embodiments are described above, it will be understoodit is not intended to limit the invention to these particularembodiments. On the contrary, the invention includes alternatives,modifications and equivalents that are within the spirit and scope ofthe appended claims. Numerous specific details are set forth in order toprovide a thorough understanding of the subject matter presented herein.But it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that thesubject matter may be practiced without these specific details. In otherinstances, well-known methods, procedures, components, and circuits havenot been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspectsof the embodiments.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for providing access to one or moreperipheral devices over a social networking platform, comprising: at aserver of the social networking platform: registering a first peripheraldevice coupled to a first user device as a respective social networkcontact of a user account associated with the first user device; andproviding user access to the first peripheral device via a socialnetworking client application executing at the first user device,wherein the social networking client application recognizes the firstperipheral device as the respective social network contact of the useraccount associated with the first user device.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein providing access to the first peripheral device coupled to thefirst user device via a social networking client application executingat the first user device further comprises: receiving a first instantmessage request from the first user device, the first instant messagerequest including a first instant message and identifying the registeredfirst peripheral device as a target of the first instant message; and inresponse to receiving the first instant message request from the firstuser device: obtaining an encoded instruction targeting the registeredfirst peripheral device based on content of the first instant message;and sending the encoded instruction to the registered first peripheraldevice via the first user device.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinproviding access to the first peripheral device coupled to the firstuser device via a social networking client application executing at thefirst user device further comprises: receiving a first encoded messagefrom the first user device, the first encoded message being a messageinitiated by the first peripheral device, and forwarded to the servervia the social networking client application executing at the first userdevice; and in response to the receiving the first encoded message fromthe first user device: obtaining a second instant message based oncontent of the first encoded message; and sending the second instantmessage to the first user device, wherein the social networking clientapplication presents the second instant message as an instant messagefrom the respective social network contact representing the peripheraldevice to the user account associated with the first user device.
 4. Themethod of claim 1, providing access to the first peripheral device via asocial networking client application executing at the first user devicefurther comprises: establishing a one-to-one chat session between arespective user of the user account and the respective social networkingcontact representing the peripheral device.
 5. The method of claim 1,providing access to the first peripheral device via a social networkingclient application executing at the first user device further comprises:establishing a group chat session between a respective user of the useraccount, the respective social networking contact representing the firstperipheral device, and at least one other social network contact of theuser account.
 6. The method of claim 5, providing access to the firstperipheral device via a social networking client application executingat the first user device further comprises: during the group chatsession, receiving permission from the respective user of the useraccount to grant control of the first peripheral device to the at leastone other social network contact of the user account; and in response toreceiving the permission, enabling communication from the at least oneother social network contact of the user account to a respective socialnetwork identity of the first peripheral device during the group chatsession.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein enabling communication fromthe at least one other social network contact of the user account to arespective social network identity of the first peripheral device duringthe group chat session further comprises: receiving a second instantmessage request from a second user device associated with the at leastone other social network contact of the user account, the second instantmessage request including a third instant message and identifying theregistered first peripheral device as a target recipient of the thirdinstant message; and in response to receiving the second instant messagerequest from the second user device: obtaining a second encodedinstruction to the registered first peripheral device based on contentof the third instant message; and sending the second encoded instructionand the third instant message to the first user device, wherein thesocial networking client application displays the third instant messageat the first user device and forwards the second encoded instruction tothe registered first peripheral device.
 8. The method of claim 5,providing access to the first peripheral device via a social networkingclient application executing at the first user device further comprises:receiving a second encoded message from the first user device, thesecond encoded message being a message initiated by the first peripheraldevice coupled to the first user device, and sent to the server via thesocial networking client application executing at the first user device;and in response to the receiving the second encoded message from thefirst user device: obtaining a fourth instant message based on contentof the second encoded message; and sending the fourth instant message tothe first user device and a second user device associated with the atleast one other social network contact of the user account, wherein thefourth instant message is presented at the first user device and thesecond user device as a message received from the respective socialnetwork contact representing the first peripheral device.
 9. A systemfor providing access to one or more peripheral devices over a socialnetworking platform, comprising: one or more processors; and memoryhaving instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when executed byone or more processors, cause the processors to perform operations,comprising: registering a first peripheral device coupled to a firstuser device as a respective social network contact of a user accountassociated with the first user device; and providing user access to thefirst peripheral device via a social networking client applicationexecuting at the first user device, wherein the social networking clientapplication recognizes the first peripheral device as the respectivesocial network contact of the user account associated with the firstuser device.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein providing access to thefirst peripheral device coupled to the first user device via a socialnetworking client application executing at the first user device furthercomprises: receiving a first instant message request from the first userdevice, the first instant message request including a first instantmessage and identifying the registered first peripheral device as atarget of the first instant message; and in response to receiving thefirst instant message request from the first user device: obtaining anencoded instruction targeting the registered first peripheral devicebased on content of the first instant message; and sending the encodedinstruction to the registered first peripheral device via the first userdevice.
 11. The system of claim 9, wherein providing access to the firstperipheral device coupled to the first user device via a socialnetworking client application executing at the first user device furthercomprises: receiving a first encoded message from the first user device,the first encoded message being a message initiated by the firstperipheral device, and forwarded to the server via the social networkingclient application executing at the first user device; and in responseto the receiving the first encoded message from the first user device:obtaining a second instant message based on content of the first encodedmessage; and sending the second instant message to the first userdevice, wherein the social networking client application presents thesecond instant message as an instant message from the respective socialnetwork contact representing the peripheral device to the user accountassociated with the first user device.
 12. The system of claim 9,wherein providing access to the first peripheral device via a socialnetworking client application executing at the first user device furthercomprises: establishing a one-to-one chat session between a respectiveuser of the user account and the respective social networking contactrepresenting the peripheral device.
 13. The system of claim 9, whereinproviding access to the first peripheral device via a social networkingclient application executing at the first user device further comprises:establishing a group chat session between a respective user of the useraccount, the respective social networking contact representing the firstperipheral device, and at least one other social network contact of theuser account.
 14. The system of claim 13, wherein providing access tothe first peripheral device via a social networking client applicationexecuting at the first user device further comprises: during the groupchat session, receiving permission from the respective user of the useraccount to grant control of the first peripheral device to the at leastone other social network contact of the user account; and in response toreceiving the permission, enabling communication from the at least oneother social network contact of the user account to a respective socialnetwork identity of the first peripheral device during the group chatsession.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein enabling communication fromthe at least one other social network contact of the user account to arespective social network identity of the first peripheral device duringthe group chat session further comprises: receiving a second instantmessage request from a second user device associated with the at leastone other social network contact of the user account, the second instantmessage request including a third instant message and identifying theregistered first peripheral device as a target recipient of the thirdinstant message; and in response to receiving the second instant messagerequest from the second user device: obtaining a second encodedinstruction to the registered first peripheral device based on contentof the third instant message; and sending the second encoded instructionand the third instant message to the first user device, wherein thesocial networking client application displays the third instant messageat the first user device and forwards the second encoded instruction tothe registered first peripheral device.
 16. The system of claim 13,providing access to the first peripheral device via a social networkingclient application executing at the first user device further comprises:receiving a second encoded message from the first user device, thesecond encoded message being a message initiated by the first peripheraldevice coupled to the first user device, and sent to the server via thesocial networking client application executing at the first user device;and in response to the receiving the second encoded message from thefirst user device: obtaining a fourth instant message based on contentof the second encoded message; and sending the fourth instant message tothe first user device and a second user device associated with the atleast one other social network contact of the user account, wherein thefourth instant message is presented at the first user device and thesecond user device as a message received from the respective socialnetwork contact representing the first peripheral device.
 17. Anon-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions storedthereon, the instructions, when executed by one or more processors,cause the processors to perform operations, comprising: registering afirst peripheral device coupled to a first user device as a respectivesocial network contact of a user account associated with the first userdevice; and providing user access to the first peripheral device via asocial networking client application executing at the first user device,wherein the social networking client application recognizes the firstperipheral device as the respective social network contact of the useraccount associated with the first user device.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein providing access to thefirst peripheral device coupled to the first user device via a socialnetworking client application executing at the first user device furthercomprises: receiving a first instant message request from the first userdevice, the first instant message request including a first instantmessage and identifying the registered first peripheral device as atarget of the first instant message; and in response to receiving thefirst instant message request from the first user device: obtaining anencoded instruction targeting the registered first peripheral devicebased on content of the first instant message; and sending the encodedinstruction to the registered first peripheral device via the first userdevice.